Climate Disinformation in Asia: A Deliberate Strategy Against Indigenous Peoples
The report identifies major forms of climate disinformation across Asia. Disinformation increasingly operates through selective reporting, omissions and the manipulation of truths.
Asia is home to more than 260 million Indigenous Peoples (IPs). At the same time, they are increasingly targeted by climate disinformation narratives that distort the causes of climate change, promote misleading solutions and obscure responsibility for environmental harm.
Going beyond the consolidation of findings in Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, Philippines and Thailand, this report uncovers how climate disinformation is strategically deployed across South and Southeast Asia, distorting public discourse, marginalising Indigenous perspectives and legitimising environmentally harmful policies. It identifies four key forms of climate disinformation – one-sided media coverage, greenwashing, false climate solutions and denial of accountability – and examines their impacts, including exclusion from decision-making, impairment of traditional ways of life, forced displacement, criminalisation and intimidation.
Drawing on evidence from the country baselines studies, the report also explores cross-border dynamics, such as the role of transnational corporate networks and digital platforms in amplifying anti-Indigenous narratives. It offers actionable regional-level recommendations for for a range of stakeholders, including the international community, governments, international non-governmental organisations, civil society organisations, the media, technology companies and IPs themselves, aiming to strengthen environmental protection and safeguard Indigenous self-determination. By equipping stakeholders with regional case studies and analytical frameworks, this report serves as a practical toolkit for constructive journalism and informed climate governance. It is a call to confront the power structures that undermine Indigenous rights and to move towards climate action that is genuinely inclusive, rights-based, and ecologically sustainable.
Read the full report to learn more about the regional patterns of climate disinformation and the urgent need for collaborative action across Asia.
