Editor’s choice
Editor’s choice
Based on a case study focused on lithium mining in Argentina, SEI researchers, along with local Argentinian scientists, argue the importance of including the perspectives local communities and Indigenous Peoples in the process of developing indicators measuring progress towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
From agricultural conservation to city safety and public health initiatives, the UN’s 17 SDGs cover a wide range of goals for global sustainable development. However, much of these goals overlook the perspectives of local and Indigenous communities, contributing to challenges in the policy implementation and success of these goals.
SEI researchers, along with local scientists, surveyed communities on their observed impacts of lithium mining, exposing unaddressed environmental and economic issues and allowing the researchers to identify solutions that align with the SDGs.
Based on this case study conducted in the Argentine Altiplano and its lithium mining industry, this policy brief suggests that national and local policymaking in Argentina, as well as SDGs globally, should include Indigenous Peoples, as such partnerships ensure better results and more accurate indicators reflecting communities’ needs. They suggest the following actions:
Journal article / This article uses Indigenous frameworks in proposing indicators aligned with the UN SDGs for lithium mining in Argentina.
Tool / A practical tool for understanding how groups of policy areas and targets interact, using systems thinking.
SEI podcast / In this podcast episode SEI’s Laura Forni explores how lithium mining in the Andean mountains is impacting Indigenous communities.
Journal article / Most methods of evaluating progress on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) give only a limited view of their impacts. Researchers try a new approach.
Perspective / Easy-to-use tools connecting climate action and other SDGs are what is needed to increase policy coherence and maximize climate and SDG synergies.
