Kota Kinabalu: Sustainable development will remain an incomplete promise unless indigenous communities are recognised not as passive recipients of aid but as leaders, partners and custodians of the natural environment, speakers told the Sabah Asia-Pacific Impact Investing for Sustainable Development Summit 2026.
In a panel on “Sustainable Development through Indigenous Stewardship”, indigenous leaders and policy experts argued that investment in Sabah’s rural communities must move beyond conventional measures of economic growth to embrace traditional ecological knowledge, equitable development and community-led conservation.
Their message came as governments and investors increasingly seek to align capital with environmental, social and governance (ESG) goals, while indigenous peoples worldwide continue to advocate for greater recognition of their role in protecting biodiversity and ensuring sustainable land management.
Executive Director of Pacos Trust, Anne Lasimbang, said indigenous communities have long practised sustainability, not as a development strategy but as a way of life rooted in generations of observation, experience and spiritual connection with nature.
“It is the wisdom that we have accumulated through generations through observation, practice and reflection,” she said.
“This wisdom is passed down through stories, songs, lullabies and our daily practices.
Anne welcomed the summit organisers for placing indigenous leadership on the agenda of an investment forum, describing it as an important acknowledgement that indigenous communities are central, not peripheral, to discussions on sustainable finance.
She said indigenous worldviews are built upon harmony, balance, respect and stewardship, where people see themselves as part of the environment rather than separate from it.
“We are part of the land. We consider ourselves part of the environment as stewards,” she said.
Those values, however, are increasingly under pressure from rapid modernisation, changing economic priorities and large-scale development projects that often overlook indigenous rights and knowledge systems.
Anne warned that unless deliberate efforts are made to document, revitalise and pass on indigenous knowledge to younger generations, much of it risks disappearing.
“If we don’t revitalise this knowledge and these values, they will be gone,” she said.
She called for greater investment in community learning centres, youth programmes and cultural initiatives that reconnect young people with their heritage and natural environment.
Equally important, she said, is ensuring that indigenous communities have a genuine voice in development decisions affecting their ancestral lands.
“Free, Prior and Informed Consent is a must,” Anne said.
“That is part of transparency and disclosure if we want to invest in indigenous communities.”Her remarks resonated with Datuk Dr Richard Gunting, founder of Orou Sapulot, whose community-based enterprise in Sabah’s remote interior has sought to demonstrate that conservation, cultural preservation and economic development can reinforce rather than undermine one another.
Drawing on his own childhood growing up in rural Sabah, Richard said indigenous communities already possess the knowledge and resilience needed to shape their own future.
“The communities have their own knowledge, skills and experience. After all, they have survived for a long, long time,” he said.
Reflecting on his earlier career in government, Richard admitted he once viewed rural communities as “beneficiaries” of development programmes, a mindset he now rejects.
“I was one of those culprits that used the term ‘beneficiaries’,” he said.
“I’m not using that anymore.”Instead, he said development should be built on partnership, with communities taking ownership of projects while external organisations provide support, investment and market access.
At Orou Sapulot, that philosophy has translated into three interconnected initiatives: community-based ecotourism, sustainable agriculture and forest regeneration.
Ecotourism showcases indigenous culture and Sabah’s natural landscapes while generating income for villagers. Sustainable farming seeks to modernise traditional agriculture without abandoning indigenous practices, enabling smallholders to increase productivity and household incomes.
Forest restoration combines the planting of endemic tree species with commercially viable crops such as cacao, coffee and durian, creating both ecological and economic returns.
“We are not just beneficiaries. We are community-owned, indigenous, investment-ready, with measurable returns,” he said.
Beyond economics, he said preserving culture remains equally important, expressing concern that younger generations increasingly see formal education as a reason to abandon their indigenous identity.
“I worry because I see the younger generation using going to school as an excuse to forget about their culture,” he said.
“Without the culture, you lose your tribal identity.”
