Urgent Demands for the Global Observance of Indigenous Peoples Day in 2025
On August 9, the world marks the International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples, with this year's theme being "Indigenous Peoples and AI: Defending Rights, Shaping Futures." This day serves as a reminder of the ongoing challenges faced by Indigenous communities, particularly in the context of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and data sovereignty.
The roots of these challenges can be traced back to past and ongoing forms of extraction and colonialism, now expressed through AI data practices. Indigenous communities often find their cultural knowledge, histories, and languages being extracted without consent, raising fears of erasure or distortion by AI systems trained on such data.
One of the major challenges is data extraction without consent. AI systems frequently train on vast datasets that include Indigenous cultural and linguistic data gathered without permission, replicating colonial patterns of control and misuse. This has led to urgent calls for Indigenous data sovereignty—the right of Indigenous peoples to control how information about them is collected, used, and shared.
Other challenges include environmental impacts, data bias and misrepresentation, and loss of cultural nuance. The construction and operation of AI data centers require critical minerals, frequently mined from Indigenous lands, and vast water and energy resources, threatening local ecosystems and ways of life. AI reflects colonial biases embedded in training data, resulting in systems that perpetuate harmful stereotypes, marginalize Indigenous voices, and produce unfair outcomes in legal, social, or resource contexts. AI models poorly grasp cultural protocols, such as storytelling traditions that govern when and how knowledge should be shared, risking inappropriate exposure or misuse of sensitive cultural information.
To mitigate these issues, it is crucial to ensure ethical oversight, embed Indigenous leadership and representation, support language revitalization and cultural preservation, and build trust-based relationships between technology developers and Indigenous communities. By doing so, we can prevent new forms of digital colonialism and harness AI’s potential benefits for Indigenous self-determination, culture, and environmental stewardship.
The SIRGE Coalition offers resources in English, Spanish, Quechua, and Nahuatl on the impacts of transition mineral mining and their work. The coalition was launched three years ago to safeguard Indigenous Peoples' rights in the energy transition.
Regrettably, Indigenous Peoples continue to face attacks, with 49% of murdered environmental or land defenders being Indigenous or Afro-descendants in 2023. It is essential that states, policymakers, and corporations listen to Indigenous people, respect Indigenous sovereignty, and uphold the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
Indigenous territories worldwide hold significant untapped heavy metal reserves, posing a risk to Indigenous lands and communities. Indigenous Peoples, their values, and knowledge systems hold solutions to today's greatest challenges, including climate change, ecocide, and biodiversity loss. Let us celebrate their resilience and contributions on this International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples, and work together to ensure their rights are respected and their voices heard.
The Executive Director of Cultural Survival, Aimee Roberson, is Choctaw and Chickasaw, exemplifying the vital role Indigenous leaders play in advocating for the rights of their communities. Let us learn from their wisdom and work towards a future where Indigenous data sovereignty is respected, and Indigenous voices are included in AI development.
References:
[1] Cultural Survival. (n.d.). Indigenous Data Sovereignty. Retrieved from https://www.cs.org/indigenous-data-sovereignty/
[2] Indigenous.ai. (n.d.). About. Retrieved from https://indigenous.ai/about/
[3] Indigenous.ai. (n.d.). Our Approach. Retrieved from https://indigenous.ai/our-approach/
[4] Indigenous.ai. (n.d.). Our Partners. Retrieved from https://indigenous.ai/our-partners/
[5] Indigenous.ai. (n.d.). Our Team. Retrieved from https://indigenous.ai/our-team/
[6] SIRGE Coalition. (n.d.). About Us. Retrieved from https://sirgecoalition.org/about/
[7] SIRGE Coalition. (n.d.). Our Work. Retrieved from https://sirgecoalition.org/our-work/
- Indigenous communities are concerned about the extraction of their cultural knowledge and languages, including through AI systems, which can lead to erasure or distortion, highlighting the need for Indigenous data sovereignty in the realm of AI and technology.
- The environmental impacts of AI data centers, particularly on Indigenous lands, water resources, and ecosystems, are another challenge that requires careful consideration, underscoring the importance of embedding Indigenous leadership and prioritizing cultural preservation in AI development.
