Journal of Global Ethics

ISSN: 1744-9626 (Print) 1744-9634 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rjge20

Culture and sustainable development: indigenous

contributions

Krushil Watene & Mandy Yap

To cite this article: Krushil Watene & Mandy Yap (2015) Culture and sustainable
development: indigenous contributions, Journal of Global Ethics, 11:1, 51-55, DOI:
10.1080/17449626.2015.1010099

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17449626.2015.1010099

Published online: 10 Mar 2015.

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 Journal of Global Ethics, 2015
Vol. 11, No. 1, 51–55, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17449626.2015.1010099

Culture and sustainable development: indigenous contributions

Krushil Watenea* and Mandy Yapb
a
Department of Philosophy, Massey University, Auckland, New Zealand; bCentre for Aboriginal Economic
Policy Research, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
(Invited contribution received 17 January 2015)

The Sustainable Development Goals (much like the Millennium Development Goals) sideline
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culture as a dimension of development. This short paper reconsiders the place of culture in
sustainable development, and explores what we ought to mean when we say that ‘all
cultures and civilizations can contribute to sustainable development’ [UN (United Nations).
2014. “Open Working Group Proposal for Sustainable Development Goals.” http://
sustainabledevelopment.un.org/?menu=1300]. We ask what indigenous contributions to
sustainable development might be, and we consider how insights from Māori and
Aboriginal indigenous peoples transform how sustainable development might be understood
and pursued.
Keywords: development; sustainability; culture; Māori; Aboriginal

Indigenous peoples can be found in practically every region of the world, and living on ances-
tral homelands in major cities, rainforests, mountain regions, desert plains, the arctic and small
Pacific Islands (UN 2009). The cultures and languages of indigenous peoples are responsible
for much of the cultural diversity that continues to exist (UN 2009). Their languages, knowl-
edges and values are embedded in the landscapes and natural resources within their territorial
homelands. Their territories cover approximately 24% of the land worldwide and host 80% of
the world’s biodiversity. Indigenous peoples are ‘descendants [...] of those who inhabited a
country or a geographical region at the time when people of different cultures or ethnic
origins arrived’ (UNPFII, factsheet).
Today indigenous peoples are minorities within their homelands. Marginalisation, coupled
with continued existence on (often remote) traditional lands, makes their lives, values and cultures
vulnerable to development projects that require (and impact on) natural resources (Wessendorf
and Garcia-Alix 2009). Indigenous peoples are increasingly vulnerable to forced displacement
as a result of mining, hydroelectric dams, agro-industrial enterprises, rising sea levels, conflict,
conservation and tourism (among other things). In this context, indigenous peoples share the
common goal of having their survival, cultural values, and rights to land and natural resources
recognised. Indigenous peoples are concerned with creating space (both nationally and interna-
tionally) to articulate, pursue and reclaim lives they value.
As the international community turns its focus to the Post15 Agenda and the Sustainable
Development Goals, indigenous communities look to sustainable development as a vehicle for
change. To the disappointment of the indigenous community, the Sustainable Development
Goals (much like the Millennium Development Goals) sideline culture as a dimension of

*Corresponding author. Email: k.watene@massey.ac.nz

© 2015 Taylor & Francis

 52 K. Watene and M. Yap

development. Culture is absent from the broad aims of sustainable development and the sustain-
able development goals, and mentioned (a mere five times) only in the targets, which fall under
the goals. In other words, culture is useful merely as a means to achieve sustainable development
in its economic, social and environmental dimensions. Culture (and the survival of indigenous
cultures, for instance) is not valued for its own sake.
The exclusion of culture overlooks the contribution that culture is able to make to ideas about
sustainable development, and misunderstands the place that cultural values have in our lives.
Culture is a constitutive part of well-being and a constructive factor in how life is valued (Rao
and Walton 2004). This short paper reconsiders the place of culture in sustainable development,
and explores what we ought to mean when we say that ‘all cultures and civilizations can contrib-
ute to sustainable development’ (UN 2014). We ask what indigenous contributions to sustainable
development might be, and we consider how insights from Māori and Aboriginal indigenous
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peoples transform how sustainable development might be understood and pursued.

Foundational contributions
For indigenous peoples, all human beings, nonhuman animals and the natural world have a
common origin, history and future. Indigenous cultures are fundamentally connected to, and
remain inseparable from, not just people but the natural world. Mountains, rivers and lands
form ‘the basis of their social organisation, economic system and cultural identification’ (Nicholas
and Singh 1996). Human beings are understood to be only one part of a development story that
includes and weaves all things in the world (and universe) together (Marsden 2003a). Our shared
and overlapping lands, oceans and rivers connect us. For instance, the Māori creation narrative
provides an account of the relationships between all things, and places all things within a
single creation framework – a single genealogy. In so doing, the Māori creation narrative illus-
trates the central place that ‘whakapapa’ (literally ‘to place in layers’) has within the Māori
world (Marsden 2003a, 2003b; Marsden and Henare 1992; Mutu and McCully 2003; Sadler
2007). ‘Whakapapa’ provides an account of the connections and relationships between people
and all things – making sense of the world through relationships.
Development from this perspective is relational – the starting points for well-being and devel-
opment are our shared origins, our shared existence and interdependent futures. Well-being and
development are intimately bound up with other people and the natural world – development
ought to enable, expand and promote harmonious relationships between people and between
people and the natural world. Our economic, social, environmental and cultural relationships
are thoroughly intertwined. A relational starting point for development emphasises connections
to people and the natural world, and generates different kinds of reciprocal obligations to
people and the natural world.
Two points fall out of this brief overview. First, when we say that indigenous peoples can con-
tribute to sustainable development, what we ought to mean is not merely that indigenous cultures
(traditional knowledge and practices) support the pursuit and achievement of sustainable devel-
opment goals. What we also ought to mean is that indigenous values are able to provide us
with different foundations for, and perspectives of, sustainable development. Indigenous
peoples help to shape conversations about development and sustainability, for instance, by
extending the foundations of sustainable development to include relationships and culture. The
inclusion of relationships and culture reframes how well-being and poverty might be understood.
Poverty includes not just material wealth, but also the content and quality of our relationships with
other people, and our connections to and expressions of culture. Indigenous perspectives are, in
other words, important contributions to a shared understanding of how sustainable development
ought to be conceived, and the goals that ought to be pursued.
 Journal of Global Ethics 53

Our second point is that indigenous contributions to sustainable development presuppose

indigenous self-determination. If we are serious about the contribution of indigenous peoples,
then we must also admit that no serious conversation of indigenous perspectives of sustainable
development can occur without it. The Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples outlines
minimum standards ‘for the survival, dignity and well-being of the indigenous peoples of the
world’ (UNPFII 2007). The right to self-government (article four), to participate in, and
consent to, any decisions that affect them (articles 19 and 32) and to control (and have returned)
traditionally owned lands and natural resources (article 26) form the basis of self-determination.
Self-determination enables indigenous peoples to ‘freely determine their political status and freely
pursue their economic, social and cultural development’ (UNPFII 2007). Self-determination
allows indigenous peoples to determine the means by which they develop and to be part of
national and international decision-making that affects them (now and in the future). Sustainable
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development for indigenous peoples is an important part of a broader framework of self-

determination.

Goals, targets and indicators

The disconnection between indigenous peoples’ worldviews and aspirations for sustainable
development, and international and national priorities can be usefully framed in Taylor’s
(2008) ‘Recognition Space’. The ‘Recognition Space’ is a framework for examining the different
positioning, worldviews and intentions of indigenous peoples on the one side and national and
international targets set by governments and international bodies on the other side. It is the inter-
section between the two spaces where meaningful and substantive engagement and measurement
is required so that indigenous worldviews and aspirations form the platform for developing appro-
priate goals, targets and indicators.
There is, however, very little mention of inclusive participation in the principles for setting the
sustainable development goals, targets and indicators (Sustainable Development Solutions
Network). The dominant paradigm of goal setting, data collection and measurement – in its uni-
versal applicability – lets indigenous contributions fall out of the discussion. Similarly, the Sus-
tainable Development Goals set by the Australian Government focus on ‘closing the gap’ between
indigenous and non-indigenous socio-economic outcomes as well as social, human, natural and
economic capital. There is no mention of culture in developing sustainability as pursued by a
nation. Instead the focus is on how sustainability requires that a combination of environmental,
economic and community dimensions are maintained and improved. Cultural diversity as
measured by demographic information on the Aboriginal population is mentioned only as contex-
tual indicators (National Sustainability Council 2013). In New Zealand, culture does not feature
as one of the target dimensions, which are three: environmental responsibility, economic effi-
ciency and social cohesion. Instead, culture and identity are part of social cohesion, which encom-
passes historic heritage, cultural diversity, cultural identity and Māori cultural identity (Statistics
New Zealand 2008).
Indigenous groups and other stakeholders have provided insights into how culture could be
included and measured. One such effort is demonstrated in the development of Cultural Indicators
for Food security, Food Sovereignty and Sustainable Development. The indicators highlight the
importance of access to lands, territories and natural resources for hunting and harvesting, con-
sumption of traditional foods, ceremonial cultural practices, language use and traditional
names for food security and sovereignty. Whilst the cultural indicators developed are primarily
geared towards food consumption and production, the foundation of culture as key to sustaining
and balancing development with nature and people can be more widely applied to the Sustainable
Development Goals.
 54 K. Watene and M. Yap

The Indigenous Peoples Major Groups’ Vision and Priorities of the Sustainable Development
Goals Working Document is another example. The working document reinforces the significance
of poverty for sustainable development, but also emphasises the need to understand poverty (and
the experience of poverty) from the perspective of indigenous peoples. Targets include, for
instance, not just access to basic services, but the availability of culturally appropriate services,
collective rights to land and food sovereignty. The document emphasises self-determination
and the free, prior and informed consent of indigenous peoples in national and international devel-
opment decision-making. In addition, there is a focus on the vulnerability and protection of indi-
genous communities, territories and natural resources from conflict, unsustainable industrial
practices, and the impacts of climate change. There is also a general concern for the recognition
of indigenous perspectives and contributions within the global community, and the need to protect
(through self-determination) indigenous peoples’ cultural heritage, traditional knowledge,
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systems and practices. There is, in other words, a strong concern for the inclusion of indigenous
perspectives – their lives, values and practices – more significantly within the sustainable devel-
opment goals, targets and indicators.
If relationships and kinship systems are important, then indicators that reflect the sharing and
distribution of traditional foods and other forms of support are important. The use of traditional
knowledge to manage land, water and natural resources becomes an important indicator for con-
servation and sustainable use of the oceans, seas and marine resources. As traditional knowledge
is integral to the cultures and identities of indigenous peoples, language use, ceremonial practices
and opportunities for intergenerational knowledge transfer are important indicators. In addition,
the identification and presence of species, flora and fauna at particular seasons as well as access to
sites for hunting, harvesting, production of food (among other things) are indicators of whether
economic development is sustainable from an indigenous perspective. In this space, there has
been work underway for some time now in New Zealand around the Cultural Health Index,
which engages Māori perspectives on freshwater management (Tipa and Teirney 2006).
Failure to consider culture as an important pillar of sustainable development overlooks the
contribution that indigenous peoples can make, and ought to be able to make, regarding how
we ground sustainable development. A commitment to indigenous peoples’ self-determination
underpins any contribution from indigenous peoples for sustainable development. In addition,
overlooking the contribution of indigenous peoples is likely to result in the pursuit of programmes
and policies that improve the social, economic and environmental aspects of people at the expense
of a decline in the cultural well-being of many indigenous peoples. This may also result in the
collection and disaggregation of data and indicators, which may not have any relevance for indi-
genous outcomes and circumstances on the ground. An integrated information system, which con-
siders all aspects, is crucial so that the relationships and trade-offs between the different pillars can
be considered (PUMC-UNAM 2008). If we are serious about the contribution of all cultures and
civilisations to sustainable development, then we must also be serious about the inclusion of
culture as a critical pillar in the Post15 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals.

Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on contributors
Krushil Watene is Lecturer in Philosophy with Massey University. Her research includes contemporary
moral and political philosophy and development studies – with a particular commitment to indigenous phil-
osophies and development. She was previously Research Fellow with the James Henare Māori Research
 Journal of Global Ethics 55

Centre, University of Auckland. Krushil is of Māori (Ngāti Whātua, Ngapuhi) and Tongan (Hunga, Vava’u)
descent.
Mandy Yap is Research Officer and Doctoral Research Scholar with the Centre for Aboriginal Economic
Policy Research (CAEPR), Australian National University. Her research interests include the construction
of well-being indicators, and gender equality in indigenous development. Her doctoral research develops cul-
turally relevant and gender-sensitive indicators of well-being with the Yawuru community in Broome,
Western Australia.

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