Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Indigenous Self-Determination: Empty Promises, Perils, and Pathways Forward for Social-Ecological Justice

As Earth Day 2025 underscores the urgency of addressing climate and biodiversity crises, the global community faces a critical juncture in reconciling technological innovation with Indigenous sovereignty. The rapid proliferation of artificial intelligence (AI) systems, touted as tools for environmental conservation and climate action, risks perpetuating colonial patterns of extraction and erasure unless grounded in Indigenous self-determination and Indigenous rule of law grounded in Rights of Nature frameworks. While legal instruments like Ecuador’s constitutional recognition of Pacha Mama (2008), New Zealand’s Whanganui River personhood (2017), and New York State Bill on the Great Lakes Rights formally center Indigenous functional governance, AI-driven initiatives often perpetuate colonial patterns of ecological governance by circumventing Indigenous jurisdiction and exacerbating enforcement gaps. This report examines the "innovation illusion" driving AI solutionism, analyzes its threats to Indigenous Peoples, Local Communities, and Afro-Descendants (IPs-LCs-ADs), and outlines pathways for centering socio-ecological justice through rights-based Data and AI governance.