Organized by:

• UN Human Rights

• Asia Indigenous Peoples Network on Extractive Industries and Energy

• Right Energy Partnership with Indigenous Peoples

• Forest Peoples Program

• Business & Human Rights Resource Center

• Heirich Boell Stiftung Southeast Asia 

Background

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In today’s rapidly evolving landscape of sustainability governance, certification and audit schemes are gaining traction across industries as key tools for ensuring ethical and responsible business conduct. Yet these mechanisms frequently fall short of upholding human rights, particularly for communities most affected by extractive activities, land use change, and market-driven climate solutions. This gap has become increasingly visible as new certification models emerge to govern carbon credits, biodiversity offsets, and renewable energy markets—often reinforcing systemic exclusion while portraying themselves as progressive.

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Anchored in the 2025 UNRBHR Forum theme, “Anchoring Progress and Strengthening Regional Leadership on Human Rights through Crisis,” this session draws attention to how verification systems can inadvertently widen the accountability gap for Indigenous Peoples and other marginalized communities. It builds on recent developments, including the Global Convening of Indigenous Peoples on Audit, Certification, and Verification Systems Impacting Indigenous Peoples' Rights, and broader UN efforts to align business practices with the UNGPs and UNDRIP.

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This session uniquely emphasizes Indigenous leadership and community-led oversight in shaping certification systems. Rather than focusing solely on technical reform, it seeks to elevate grassroots alternatives that challenge exclusionary practices and offer pathways to justice and accountability.

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By foregrounding grassroots reflections and community-driven recommendations, the session offers a critical yet constructive lens on how certification schemes can evolve to meet their intended human rights obligations. It invites UN actors, governments, and business representatives to engage in a transformative dialogue that reimagines these systems as vehicles for equity, remedy, and inclusive governance. Insights from the discussion will inform ongoing advocacy and engagement with certification bodies and UN mechanisms.

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Key Objectives

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• Expose and Analyze Gaps: Examine how current verification and certification systems—particularly in carbon markets, biodiversity credits, and supply chains—are failing to protect Indigenous rights and community well-being. 

• Center Community-Based Alternatives: Highlight grassroots recommendations and examples of Indigenous Peoples and community-led oversight mechanisms that embody procedural justice, with potential for integration into global frameworks.

• Engage Decision-Makers for Reform: Mobilize stakeholders toward reform among UN actors, state representatives, and industry leaders on reorienting certification schemes toward meaningful accountability, participation, and remedy

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Guiding Questions

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• How can certification and audit systems be redesigned to reflect Indigenous leadership and embed community-driven accountability at every stage?

• What lessons can be drawn from grassroots oversight models to challenge exclusionary practices in market-based certification schemes?

• How can UN actors, governments, and businesses support a shift from technical compliance to rights-based accountability rooted in lived experience and justice?

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Format

• This session will be held in a roundtable discussion format to encourage inclusive, interactive dialogue among participants.

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