Our Values

PURPOSE

Below are the values, principles, and protocols that guide Nia Tero’s work and partnerships. These guiding principles are meant to ensure that all of our initiatives and relationships root in reciprocity, respect, and trust, while aligning with our organizational commitments.

ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENTS

These values and principles underpin the below organizational commitments.

OUR VISION & MISSION

The governance systems and cultural wisdom sustained by Indigenous Peoples have significant impact on the health of the ecosystems where they live. We have learned that funding Indigenous Peoples’ guardianship of territories is one of most effective pathways for protecting the Earth’s most important ecosystems5. We believe Nia Tero can be most impactful by growing, shaping, and strengthening the field of practice advancing Indigenous Peoples’ guardianship. 

Our vision is that Indigenous Peoples’ guardianship is enabled everywhere possible on Earth as part of a just and vibrant future. 

Our mission is to directly support Indigenous Peoples’ guardianship and elevate the role and influence of Indigenous Peoples as essential to ensuring planetary health and habitability. 

LOOKING FORWARD

To contribute to this, over the next decade we will UPHOLD a network of place-anchored partnerships with Indigenous Peoples that demonstrate the power of Indigenous guardianship to sustain a vibrant Earth. Building upon and working alongside this network, we will also support efforts to EXPAND recognition and support for Indigenous guardianship globally.

INDIGENOUS GUARDIANSHIP PARTNERSHIPS

All of Nia Tero’s work is grounded in guardianship partnerships. We define these partnerships as place-anchored with the people living in a collective territory or place, and their partners and chosen allies, to secure a self-determined vision for guardianship of thriving territory. The term is specific to Indigenous Peoples who share biophysical geographies of place, history, and sustenance as well as metaphysical spaces tied to identity, the sacred and home. Specifically, our place-anchored partnerships are with peoples who share (a) history with a common place, (b) reliance on and reciprocity with the physical features and living diversity of that place, (c) decision-making directly linked to that place, and (d) spiritual, cultural, and social ways and means specific to that place.

IDENTITY

We are a global bridging organization that brings Indigenous Peoples and allies together to advance what we call Indigenous Peoples’ guardianship. Our partnerships with Indigenous Peoples are explicitly structured to honor self-determination, respect time-honed knowledge systems and ways of being, and build trust while upholding the sacred value of reciprocity. 

INTERNATIONAL COMMITMENTS

Our guidelines and principles respect and honor the following international commitments:

• The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP)
• The requirement of “free, prior, and informed consent” (FPIC)
• ILO Convention (No. 169) on Indigenous and Tribal Peoples
• The Guiding Principles of the Conservation Initiative on Human Rights.

FIVE PRINCIPLES THAT GUIDE OUR WORK

Our work is rooted in upholding honesty, equity, reciprocity, and trust in our engagement with Indigenous Peoples. These values manifest in principles of practice that guide everything we do. 

1. Sovereign Self-Determination of Indigenous Peoples

The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples is a foundational standard for all our work. Our mission, vision and aspirations for impact all center the rights of Indigenous Peoples to care for thriving homelands and waters in their own ways.

How this principle is put into practice in our work and in our partnerships:

• Follow and respect Indigenous Peoples’ self-determined priorities and decision-making processes to achieve guardianship.
• Fund Indigenous organizations directly. When this is not possible, fund only non-Indigenous organizations identified as trusted partners by Indigenous Peoples.
• Provide direct technical support only when requested and unavailable in local or regional organizational networks.
• Follow the guidance of Indigenous leaders at a regional and global level.
• Never take credit for the efforts of Indigenous Peoples or speak on their behalf, unless explicitly requested to do so by Indigenous Peoples themselves.
• Prioritize responsive, phased, and efficient service to Indigenous Peoples in all our processes.
• Whenever possible, commit to partnerships that can span human generation times.

How this principle is put into practice in our work and in our funder partnerships:

• Honor and respect Indigenous Peoples’ autonomy, free choice, and right to self-determination.
• Step back from a decision-making role because Nia Tero’s perspective or that of our funders could constrain our Indigenous partners’ ability to exercise self-determination.
• Honor and respect the right of our Indigenous partners to withhold their consent for any funding partnership they deem to be detrimental to their interests.
• Honor and respect Indigenous partners’ right to participate in a thorough consultation process on any project or development that might impact them.
• Conduct consultations through the Indigenous Peoples' own institutions and representatives, supported by adequate resources and good faith.
• Invest in building the capacity of Indigenous partners.
• Zero tolerance for coercion or threats against Indigenous Peoples.
• Additional “Guidelines for Funding Partnerships” can be found at the bottom of this "Guiding Principles" overview.*

2. Respect for the Full Spectrum of Life on Earth

Our work and partnerships support Indigenous guardianship that sustains thriving places with an outsized benefit to diverse and abundant communities of life otherwise diminished or threatened elsewhere.

3. Accountability

How this principle is put into practice in our work and in our partnerships:

• Practice honesty and transparency; take responsibility for mistakes and correcting them to resolve conflicts impartially; monitor activities inclusively; and improve approaches accordingly.
• Document our fundraising work in ways that are culturally responsive and appropriate; establish conflict-resolution strategies before problems arise; and collaboratively implement and consistently revisit co-developed plans.

4. Equity, Justice, and Inclusion

How this principle is put into practice in our work and in our partnerships: 

• Demonstrate respect for Indigenous value systems and choices.
• Respect the fact that Indigenous value systems are dynamic and diverse. Equity and justice are place-based and dependent on local context.
• When cultivating relationships with Indigenous Peoples, we share power, opportunities, resources, and benefits generously with the goal of amplifying access and influence.
• Invite Indigenous partners to participate in the donor-engagement process as early as possible, to build direct relationships between funders and our Indigenous partners.
• Demonstrate a commitment to listening to diverse voices.
• All of Nia Tero’s forums, structures, and processes are non-discriminatory; culturally responsive; accessible; and physically and emotionally safe for people of all identities.

5. Overarching Good Faith

How this guides our work and the partnerships we establish and sustain:

• Conduct our work with honesty, respect, humility, integrity, and in the spirit of service.
• Listen early, listen often, listen consistently, and apply learnings each step of the way.
• Additional “Guidelines for Funding Partnerships” can be found at the bottom of this "Guiding Principles" overview.*

HOW THESE PRINCIPLES SHAPE OUR WORK

• We intentionally establish partnerships with Indigenous Peoples, organizations, and communities as well as non-Indigenous partners who work in solidarity with Indigenous Peoples. In working with those who have global and/or regional knowledge, influence, and reach, we maintain equitable and just partnerships using guidelines and open, honest, and transparent communication.
• We believe that Indigenous Peoples have the cultures, wisdom, and territories essential for humanity to escape the current global ecological crisis, yet they lack the resources required for the security of these three interconnected elements. Vastly increasing access to financial assets is essential.
• We elevate and support the passing of experience, training, and capacity to the next generation of Indigenous Peoples and their chosen allies. We believe in fellowships to provide openings and opportunity for Indigenous Peoples.
• We believe that all decisions and policies that affect Indigenous Peoples and their territories must be made with Indigenous Peoples present and heard.
• We commit to elevate and amplify Indigenous voices. Our stories feature the reciprocal relationship between humanity and nature, among other personal stories told by Indigenous storytellers.
• Our knowledge, information and learnings are open-sourced so that others benefit whether they are Indigenous or non-Indigenous organizations.
• We believe that to scale impact we must create communities of learning and sharing that are led by Indigenous Peoples and enlightened non-Indigenous allies.

ENDNOTE

Everything mentioned here does not supersede any human rights obligations that Nia Tero has committed to or may be subject to. Rather, it is intended to help formalize and operationalize the values, methods, and practices through which we honor our commitment to doing our work in full, equitable partnership with Indigenous Peoples.

FOUR GUIDELINES FOR FUNDING PARTNERSHIPS*

To repair the damage from centuries of abusive extractive practices, we and our Indigenous communities seek trust-based philanthropic partnerships. We use the following guidelines to help us to assess which partnerships make sense for us to pursue:

1. Alignment with Mission and Values: The donor must demonstrate an overarching commitment to Nia Tero’s mission and values and express interest in authentically and equitably engaging with the organization and our Indigenous partners. Philanthropic engagements must be consistent with and respect the understandings of Nia Tero’s Indigenous partners, founding partners, and communities. We avoid all engagements that present conflicts of interest or even the appearance of conflicts of interest.
2. No Endorsement: Nia Tero’s relationship with a company or donor is in no way an implied or real endorsement of the company, individual, or industry. All public communications regarding philanthropic donations are subject to prior agreement by Nia Tero and our partners.
3. No Private Benefit: The engagement must not confer any private benefit to an individual or corporate entity.
4. Overarching Impact: The engagement’s benefit must outweigh the risk of damage to Nia Tero as a whole or any Indigenous partner.

If Nia Tero chooses to engage in a funding arrangement that does not perfectly fit the above guidelines, we make clear our expectations for changes and improvements over time.