Financial institutions and corporations driving coastal conflicts involving Indigenous Peoples

Financial institutions and corporations driving coastal conflicts involving Indigenous Peoples | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Financial institutions and corporations driving coastal conflicts involving Indigenous Peoples Sebastian Villasante, Julia Tovar Verba, Veronica Relano, Silvia Gomez, and 14 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-8191160/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Socio-environmental conflicts associated with large-scale economic projects in Indigenous territories are well documented, but conflicts in coastal zones remain largely unexplored. While most studies focus on the negative social-ecological impacts, the financial institutions and corporations that are responsible for these activities are often overlooked. This study addresses this gap by examining the financial institutions and corporations associated with more than 400 reported socio-environmental conflicts affecting Indigenous Peoples in coastal areas worldwide. Our results show that most financial institutions supporting projects linked to conflicts are based in Western Europe and Northern America, with Northern American institutions linked to multiple projects. The energy sector accounts for the highest number of conflicts, particularly those involving corporations operating across continents. Many European and North American corporations operate mostly in Africa, but also globally. Companies with overseas operations are associated with a higher intensity of conflicts. These findings highlight the need to scrutinize financial investments and corporate practices driving socio-environmental conflicts in coastal Indigenous territories, where human rights are often at risk. The lack of due diligence and accountability in applying environmental and social safeguards weakens protections for both ecosystems and communities. Strengthening the enforcement of national and international laws on environmental sustainability, human rights and Indigenous rights is therefore essential for coastal development projects. Environmental Policy Conservation Biology Finance extractive and development activities socio-environmental conflicts coastal zones Indigenous Peoples. Full Text Additional Declarations The authors declare no competing interests. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-8191160","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":549770615,"identity":"0ab98d10-8fd6-4318-b8b3-d9579631e3da","order_by":0,"name":"Sebastian 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