(W) Sustainable development in Indigenous communities

Session Nr.1: "Asset or Detriment?: Informal Cross-Border Socio-Economic Relations in Ethiopia-Kenya border  and Implications for Local Development"

Ethiopia-Kenya borderland is home for historically marginalized pastoral communities like the Borena, Gebra, Gari and the Somali. Before 1990s these communities were forgotten in national development discourse. Accordingly, pastoralism is regarded as ‘archaic', and ‘backward' way of life and pastoralists are seen as ‘needy' people. Post-1990s policy developments in both Ethiopia and Kenya have resulted in the change of perspective in which pastoral frontiers are started to be seen as areas with huge potential for national development. However, implementation strategies to realize local development still raise a question. From the state perspective, mobile social structures, which are indispensable for pastoral production, are regarded as a challenge for local development that must be sedentarized. Moreover, the informal economic relations are also stated in government documents as lost public revenue that has to be policed. On the other hand, local communities take informal socio-economic relationships as a backbone for their existence. This research tries to answer the question ‘are informal cross-border socio-economic relations an asset or detriment for local development?'. The findings of this research go along local communities’ perspective. Accordingly, I argue that if facilitated and supported by harmonized policies between Ethiopia and Kenya, mobile way of life and cross-border economies can fuel development from below. For policy deficencies, the paper recommends the adoption of Asset Based Community Development (ABCD) approach by policy makers to give pastoral communities leadership position in their own development and limit the role of the state to facilitate development activities

Session Nr.2: "Self-Governance and economic Self-Sufficiency: Success factors for sustainable development in indigenous communities and regions of the circumpolar North?"

How can Indigenous peoples and communities achieve the cultural match that is essential and still retain the practical capability that effective government demands in a rapidly changing and challenging world?

How can Indigenous peoples and communities move toward economic prosperity, and still retain their cultural practices, from language use to ceremonial activities, that they view as essential parts of their lives?

The first and foremost function of a culture, indigenous or non-indigenous peoples, is to satisfy their basic needs for living and surviving. “If Indians are to live and survive as Indians in the modern, economic, political, and social environment, then they must adapt and develop their traditional cultures with reference to that environment” (Bolt, 1993, 179). Cultural adaption and development cannot be constrained by prescriptive customs and traditions conceived in another time and place. The first priority for cultural adaption and development, according to Bolt, must be; “to derive a framework of traditional fundamental philosophies and principles that will serve as a guide in adapting and developing their cultures for surviving and living in the contemporary world” (Bolt, 1993, 184).

Bolt is warning against revivalism, that we can see happen in some Indigenous societies where they are striving to find back to their traditional cultural identity after years of oppression and assimilation by central government and administration. But traditional culture and values can sometimes be an obstacle to social and economic development. Going back to ‘the land’ and traditional way of life will not secure economic self-sufficiency and independence. Overall, economic development within the concept of tribal traditional economies has very limited potential for contributing to Indian economic well-being (Bolt, 1993).”Those that cling to ‘false hope’ that their traditional economy can be restored through aboriginal rights, treaties, or land claims are inhibiting the survival of Indians as Indians. Without cultural adaption and development to fit the new world, Indians are doomed to continue living and surviving in a culture of dependence with its associated sense of apathy and defeatism” (Bolt, 1993, 197).    

The HPAIED-researchers agree partly with Bolt in that the governing institutions of Indians or Indigenous peoples “must be suited to the contemporary challenges tribes face and to the world in which they operate”. (Begay, Cornell and Kalt, 1998, 45). But they disagree on the importance of political sovereignty for economic development.  According to them; “The improvement of socioeconomic and political conditions of Indigenous peoples is inextricable linked to issues of self-governance, management and leadership” (Begay, Cornell and Kalt, 1998, 43). Putting in place effective governing institutions is a crucial first step in any society’s effort to establish and sustain economic growth and to assert control over their own affairs. The HPAIED-researchers claim that economic development in Indigenous communities and regions is primarily a political process. Sovereignty and its effective exercise will play a determinative role in whether or not economic and social well-being is attainable and sustainable. On the other hand, economic self-sufficiency and independence is according to Bolt a pre-condition for achieving political sovereignty and self-governance for Indigenous peoples. To be efficient both development strategies have to be culturally embedded and appropriate

Session Nr.3: "Indigenous people and development policies in the Artic"

The interest for the Arctic and Northern areas more in general from other nations, international organisations and multinational corporations has increased the previous 10-20 years. Maybe what is going on in the North is a comprehensive socioeconomic and political transformation of the Arctic that also includes Arctic communities. A driving forces is that activities in the Arctic increasingly have impacts on global change more in general, i.e. concerning climate, industrial production and global consumptions. An important part of the overall changes is an increased focus on indigenous people, new forms of identity and empowerment.

In most parts of the Arctic global economic change encourage global companies to enter the Arctic. The result are important structural change in local industries and importantly, increasing industrial activities based on extracting natural resources in which many industries are operating on huge land areas. Examples are growing interests in oil and gas, mineral exploration, windmills, fish farming, water based power constructions and growing tourism. 

These new developments may transform the Arctic in a broad meaning of the word and these changes obviously also influence and put pressure on the way indigenous people have lived in the north.  In the same period, indigenous peoples in these areas have increased their autonomy.  Development in international law increasingly support their right to self-determination. An example from Norway makes that clear: The Sami Parliament  has developed to something much more than being a hearing institution for the government and central administration.

The session will concentrate on how and to what extent the new self-determination of indigenous peoples in the Arctic  have an impact on more general  processes going on in the Arctic. Can indigenous people through their institutions have an influence on, obstruct or even stop new industry entering the Arctic? To what extent will indigenous peoples just have to adapt to these deep going changes or to what extent will their new status and increased self-determination guarantee an important voice that can make a difference? How do indigenous people’s new position and their policy strategies have an impact for the general climate of and belie in change in the northern areas? And what is the more general consequence thereof for the future development in the Arctic?

Session Nr.4: “Reawakening the Entrepreneurial Spirit Within: Social Work Education and the Economic Re-empowerment of Indigenous Communities.”

Social work as a profession is at a critical crossroad in need of a radical shift towards more transformational and aspirational approaches that harness community energy, social innovation, economic sustainability and self-sufficiency. How we do this requires critical and reflective insight and engaged dialogue about what social and economic justice actually means in our work with disenfranchised and marginalized communities. Growing interest in social and indigenous entrepreneurship, including DeBruin and Mataira’s (2003) “Tri-level approach” that promotes fostering sources of revenue and sustainable economic wealth through tribal/native, heritage and family enterprise to improve health and wellbeing is opening up pathways to how we can strategize to re-empower communities and to actively eliminate poverty and inequality, economic disparity, educational underachievement, historic trauma and cultural disintegration. Preparing indigenous practitioners for today’s complex demands requires knowledge and skill in addressing the systemic causalities of economic injustice. This presentation makes a case for social and indigenous entrepreneurship to be taught in social work. This builds on the skills social workers already have in assessing need, identifying gaps and opportunities, determining strategies, acting decisively and mobilizing resources

Session Nr.5: "Mia Mia ‘Home and hearth; De-colonising the story of community development through the voices, experiences and knowledge of Australian Aboriginal authors"

Since colonisationAboriginal people in Australia have been subjected to top down development by successive governments predicated on the belief that Australia was an empty land inhabited by only flora and fauna. Aboriginal society was not recognised and denial of Aboriginal based knowledge systems gave rise to policies designed to educate and Christianise the empty savages with western knowledge and bring them into the ‘civilised world’. These policies and subsequent approaches in working with Aboriginal people and their communities have not worked. This workshop will explore and unpack the development and publishing of a seminal book in Australia which takes a strength based approach to promote Aboriginal community development as an alternative to empowering and building communities through Aboriginal worldviews and aspirations. Written and edited by an all Aboriginal team Mia Mia applies a multidisciplinary approach to examine the historical and contemporary conceptions of Aboriginal community development, describe the impact of post-structuralism, post modernism and globalisation and digital technology on communities today. Through the multiples voices of academics, practitioners and grass roots people future proponents of community development are challenged to think differently when working with Aboriginal people through the directions, strategies and case studies that have been designed and developed to promote culturally secure and safer ways of engaging and empowering Aboriginal people and their communities. Participants to the workshop will engage in an interactive session that will focus on the significance and role of Aboriginal knowledge systems in designing and developing innovative community development approaches to engage with Aboriginal communities