Opening Statement COP31
November 9, 2026
Koutou katoa, hakarongo mai
My name is Quack Pirihi, nō Patuharakeke ahau
We demand the right to share our wisdoms with you, our collective survival depends on it.
Our inherent, distinct, and collective rights are non-negotiable, and critical to climate action. We have borne the costs of burning fossil fuels, agribusiness, and extractive industries without our full free, prior and informed consent for generations.
However, defenders such as our co-chair Daria Egereva, face violence, criminalization and reprisals when we speak up for our rights and our territories.
For over thirty years we have brought Indigenous knowledges and sciences to these negotiations. Yet emissions continue to rise, putting 1.5°C beyond reach.
E kī e kī,
In Belém, Parties recognised our rights in paragraph 12(EYE) of the Just Transition Work Programme. COP31 must put this decision into practice across all negotiations with our full and effective participation, such as in the design and governance of the just transition mechanism.
False solutions are devastating our territories. A super El Niño threatens to deepen that harm. Parties must commit to a full phase out of fossil fuels and ensure every climate project upholds our rights and protects our territories.
The seven Indigenous socio-cultural regions demand:
Rights based–adaptation that protects our tenure, customary use, research, education, and knowledge;
Ensure all climate policies address the distinct priorities and lived realities of Indigenous women, youth and persons with disabilities;
NDCs deliver measurable commitments with our full participation in design, implementation and monitoring;
Establish a permanent agenda under the CMA that includes an Indigenous–led pathway in the Fund for responding to Loss and Damage;
All climate finance must enable direct access and governance for Indigenous Peoples’
Commit to the Agriculture and Food Systems agenda, recognizing our knowledge, science, and practices for food sovereignty.
Respect the principles of no contact, precaution and intangibility of the territories of Indigenous Peoples in Voluntary Isolation and Initial Contact.
Kia kaha, kia māia, kia ū ki te kaupapa.
Mauri ora ki tō tatou taiao
Tena tatou kaota.
