Takeaways: IIPWG January 2026 Newsletter
Items excerpted from the January 2026 Investors & Indigenous Peoples Working Group (IIPWG) Newsletter. IIPWG strategy calls take place the third Thursday of the month. Learn more.
Forestry Stewardship Council Publishes Guidance on Indigenous Peoples in Voluntary Isolation and Initial Contact in Peru
The Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC), a certification for sustainable forestry-related products, published the Advice Note for Indigenous Peoples in Voluntary Isolation and in Initial Contact in Peru. The note states, "Certified forestry concessions will no longer be allowed to have any overlap with Indigenous Reserves.” The guidance comes after Indigenous Peoples raised concerns that a FSC certified forest concession significantly threatens the Mashco Piro people in Peru.
In implementing this guidance, FSC seeks to respect the principle of no contact for Indigenous Peoples in Voluntary Isolation or Initial Contact (IPVIICs) and is notable as a certification system moving forward on protections for IPVIICs. However, the term “Indigenous Reserves” refers to areas of land designated as such by the Peruvian government, which undermines the note’s effectiveness as this definition fails to encompass the entirety of IPVIIC territory. This is of heightened concern given the efforts to rollback ancestral lands designated as Indigenous reserves in Peru.
Strengthening FPIC in Global Investor Commission on Mining 2030
The Global Investor Commission on Mining 2030 is open for consultation on its 10-Year Vision and Recommendations “to develop a consensus about the role finance has in realising a vision of a socially and environmentally responsible mining sector overall by 2030.”
While the appendices articulate Indigenous Peoples’ right to self-determination and free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) as an investor expectation for companies’ stakeholder engagement and benefit sharing practices, the recommendations do not directly incorporate consideration for Indigenous Peoples’ FPIC.
Responding to the Commission, the SIRGE Coalition notes “it is critical the framework recognizes Indigenous Peoples as rights holders, not merely stakeholders,” including respect for rights to lands, territories, and resources; upholding FPIC; and reflecting the lived realities of Indigenous communities affected by mining.
Public consultation is open through February 20.
January 2026 IIPWG Canada Call
Discussion of the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan’s (OTPP) Indigenous Action Plan (IAP), which was developed and recently published with support from the Indigenous-owned consulting firm Creative Fire. OTPP is the first of the eight largest public pension plans in Canada, also known as the “Maple 8,” to disclose an IAP.
Merle Alexander, a lawyer who co-drafted British Columbia’s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, presented on the federal government's desire to change the law, which is concerning to First Nations.
See webinars from the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation, exploring the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s Calls to Action 10 Years Later, Corporate Conversations on Reconciliation, and Confronting Residential School Denialism.
A recording of the IIPWG Canada call is available upon request; learn more about IIPWG Canada Please here.