International climate gatherings such as the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP) have become major spaces for discussing how governments and organizations should respond to climate change. Indigenous Peoples are increasingly present within these conversations and bring their own knowledge, experiences, and responsibilities to Land, Water, and future generations. However, greater representation does not necessarily mean that Indigenous Peoples have greater influence over climate decisions. In Smudging in Sharm El-Sheikh: Uplifting Lessons from Sharm El-Sheikh, the authors reflect on their experiences at COP27 to consider what meaningful Indigenous participation in international climate spaces actually requires.

The chapter begins with the experience that inspired its title. After a long day at COP27, a group of Indigenous Elders, youth, and other participants gathered outside to smudge together. There was no designated space available for the ceremony, so the group used a small metal mint tin to hold their medicines. This relatively simple moment became significant within an environment where Indigenous participants were constantly navigating unfamiliar and often colonial spaces. Smudging gave participants an opportunity to reconnect with ceremony, community, and one another while far from their home territories. The experience also demonstrates that Indigenous participation at COP cannot be understood only through formal panels and negotiations. Ceremony and relationships are also part of how Indigenous Peoples create and sustain spaces for themselves.

Alook and Reed use their experiences at COP27 to discuss the difference between Indigenous representation and meaningful participation. Although the conference included a large number of Indigenous participants and more opportunities for Indigenous-led events, Indigenous Peoples continued to have limited influence over final decisions. International climate negotiations remain largely structured around the authority of nation-states and continue to give significant power to corporate and economic interests. As a result, Indigenous Peoples can be highly visible within these spaces while still being excluded from important decision-making processes. The chapter therefore questions whether increasing representation is enough when the underlying structures of climate governance remain unchanged.

The authors also describe the emotional labour involved in participating in these spaces. Indigenous participants may find themselves repeatedly explaining or defending Indigenous knowledge while simultaneously navigating racism, exclusion, and the demands of international negotiations. Alook and Reed particularly emphasize relationships among Indigenous participants as an important source of support. Elders, youth, Knowledge Keepers, researchers, and community leaders from different Nations create connections, share teachings, and care for one another throughout the conference. These relationships show that Indigenous climate leadership is not only expressed through formal advocacy. It is also practiced through reciprocity, collective care, ceremony, and solidarity.

The chapter also asks readers to think more critically about the idea of a “just transition.” Climate policy often describes a just transition in terms of reducing emissions, developing renewable energy, and creating new economic opportunities. Alook and Reed argue that these goals remain limited if the colonial systems underlying climate change are not addressed. Indigenous approaches to climate justice emphasize relationships and responsibilities to Land, Water, more-than-human relations, and future generations. A just transition therefore requires confronting colonialism, extractivism, and dispossession rather than simply introducing new technologies into existing systems.

Drawing from discussions at COP27, the chapter concludes with four Calls-to-Action: supporting Indigenous self-determination, creating meaningful opportunities for Indigenous participation and solidarity, respecting Indigenous knowledge systems, and revitalizing Indigenous economies grounded in relationships rather than extraction. These Calls-to-Action shift attention from simply including Indigenous Peoples in existing climate processes toward changing the structures that determine whose knowledge and authority matter.

Ultimately, this chapter shows both the possibilities and limitations of Indigenous participation in international climate spaces. Indigenous Peoples are already contributing important knowledge and leadership to climate action, but meaningful climate justice requires more than representation. The experience of smudging in a mint tin captures this tension particularly well. Even within a space that was not designed around Indigenous ways of being, participants created their own space for ceremony, connection, and collective care. The chapter uses this experience to show that decolonial climate action requires Indigenous Peoples to have the authority and space to participate on their own terms.

This is a summary of the chapter "Smudging in Sharm El-Sheikh: Uplifting Lessons from Indigenous Peoples at COP 27 for the Climate and Energy Transition," published in Justice in Canada's Energy Transitions.

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