Summary:
The article highlights how Nepal’s ambitious renewable energy projects, particularly hydropower development, risk violating Indigenous Peoples' rights. Nepal, rich in water resources, aims to generate large amounts of clean energy to reduce emissions and boost its economy. However, Indigenous communities, making up a significant portion of the population, face forced evictions, environmental harm, and loss of ancestral lands without proper consent.

Despite Nepal’s legal commitments to Indigenous rights under international treaties like ILO Convention 169 and UNDRIP, these are often ignored in practice. Projects financed by institutions such as the World Bank, European Investment Bank, and Asian Development Bank have caused social and environmental damage, ignored Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC), and led to protests met with militarized responses.

The article calls for Nepal to ensure a truly just energy transition that respects Indigenous sovereignty, rights, and participation rather than prioritizing economic growth at their expense. The future of Nepal’s clean energy depends on whether the government, developers, and financiers heed Indigenous voices and legal obligations.

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