Indigenous Australians and engaged anthropologists: how can they struggle together for social justice and a safe climate?

• Published in: AlterNative: An International Journal of Indigenous Peoples
• Main Author: Baer, Hans A
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: SAGE Publications 2022
• Subjects: History; Anthropology; Cultural Studies; First Nations
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/11771801221082347; http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/11771801221082347; http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full-xml/10.1177/11771801221082347

This article is written from the position of eco-socialist scholarship. Given that anthropogenic climate change that is driven by the expropriation of the atmospheric commons constitutes a growing crisis for First Nation peoples around the world, it is imperative that engaged anthropologists, form linkages with anti-systemic movements, including Indigenous and ethnic rights movements, for social justice and environmental sustainability. In the Australian case, this article argues that there is a need to revisit and rejuvenate earlier black-red-green alliances with a push for First Peoples to receive public funds to own and control their own green energy projects, a process which has the potential to contribute to the decolonization of the Australian political economy. In some sectors, these alliances are already occurring with organizations such Original Power and the First Nations Clean Energy Network, as First Nation communities take matters into their own hands.