ID: 2266
Presenting Author: Sarah Peerless
Session: 591 - Managing the right to privacy in impact assessment
Status: pending
This presentation explores how to protect Indigenous Knowledge in impact assessments by and offers practitioner-informed strategies for safeguarding IK while meeting regulatory requirements.
The right to privacy is a fundamental human right, yet its application within impact assessments—particularly when integrating Indigenous Knowledge (IK)—remains complex. This paper examines how privacy rights intersect with regulatory transparency, drawing on recent Canadian case studies to propose practical strategies for safeguarding Indigenous Knowledge while meeting assessment requirements.
Drawing on collaborative work with First Nations, we explore how co-developed assessment plans and Indigenous-led frameworks can uphold knowledge sovereignty. These approaches recognize that IK is not simply data to be extracted, but a living system of cultural, spiritual, and ecological relationships. Protecting this knowledge requires nuanced consent processes, layered confidentiality protocols, and flexible reporting structures that respect community decisions about what to share and what to withhold.
We present tools for managing dual-reporting formats (confidential and public), navigating the inclusion of sensitive cultural sites, and designing engagement processes that prioritize trust and transparency. The paper also reflects on the ethical tensions that arise when regulatory systems demand disclosure that may conflict with Indigenous privacy norms, and how practitioners can advocate for adaptive pathways within these systems.
This work contributes to IAIA26’s theme of inclusive public engagement by offering a grounded, practitioner-informed perspective on how to protect Indigenous privacy rights in impact assessment.
Sarah Peerless is a Principal Consultant at ERM, specializing in Indigenous engagement, strategic planning, impact assessment, and collaborative assessment frameworks across Canada.
Coauthor 1: Sarah Peerless