2018 United Nations Forum on Business and Human Rights

Interpretation is provided in English and Spanish

Organized by ENEL

Brief description of the session:
This session will explore the nexus between renewable energies and Indigenous people.  Enel Green Power will be publishing a book to give a voice to some of the indigenous communities hosting renewable plants in different countries with regard to the cultural aspects of water, earth, wind and sun,  all of which,  from the company’s point of view, are primarily energy sources. This will serve as a starting point for the session.

Session objectives:
To open a multi-stakeholders’ dialogue on the implications of Indigenous people rights and renewable energies deployment.

Key discussion questions:
Analyzing how renewable plants relate to indigenous peoples, with a focus on cultural identities and natural resources. Underlying themes of this session are both the relation between indigenous peoples' rights and the impacts of business activities, as well as the link between climate change and the transition to a green economy.

Format of the session:
Roundtable and Q&A

Background to the discussion:
On the one hand, renewable energies are key to fight climate change whose negative impacts are particularly strong on those emerging economies where indigenous communities are more concentrated;  on the other hand, the same technologies still have environmental, socio-economic and cultural impacts.
 The private sector in general, and Enel Green Power in particular, has been focusing its efforts on mitigating socio-environmental impacts, through its sustainable construction site and plant models.
The panel will concentrate on how renewable energies can be integrated in an environment, which is not only a physical entity but also a cultural landscape where, for example, “energy sources” have cultural/spiritual meanings. The discussion will be led by representatives of indigenous communities EGP is working or will be working with, institutional representatives and one artist who has been working on art as a tool for social inclusion.