In the breathtaking landscapes of Nepal, Indigenous peoples are emerging as powerful guardians of their ancestral territories, challenging infrastructure projects that threaten their traditional ways of life and environmental sanctuaries.

Throughout 2025, remarkable stories of resistance unfolded across the country, with Indigenous communities taking legal action and staging protests against hydropower, mining, and cable car developments that risk displacing populations and disrupting delicate ecological systems.

The Bhote-Lhomi Singsa people made significant legal strides in November by refiling a critical writ petition at Nepal's Supreme Court against a hydropower project they argue submitted a fundamentally flawed Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). The project in Chyamtang, Ridak, and Thudam villages directly impacts communities dependent on subsistence agriculture, yak herding, and herbal medicine trade, with the hydropower company continuing construction despite community objections.

In Nepal's remote far western region, Indigenous communities in Jhumlabang, Rukum district, mounted fierce resistance against what was described as the country's largest proposed iron mining operation. Despite government approval, community groups and Indigenous rights advocates argued the project violated international legal obligations by proceeding without free, prior, and informed consent (FPIC), potentially devastating local ecosystems, farmlands, and wildlife habitats across 750 hectares.

The Pathibhara cable car project sparked particularly intense controversy, targeting a sacred forest site of the Yakthung (Limbu) community. Local estimates suggested over 40,000 trees were felled, dramatically exceeding official assessment reports. Violent clashes erupted between community members and security forces, ultimately compelling the Supreme Court to halt project construction, citing threats to biodiversity and spiritual heritage.

September's political landscape witnessed additional challenges when the previous government granted national priority status to six commercial cable car projects, including one within the legally protected Annapurna Conservation Area. This decision drew sharp criticism from Indigenous communities, lawyers, and conservationists who emphasized the lack of community consultation and potential violation of previous Supreme Court rulings restricting infrastructure in protected zones.

At the international climate conference COP30 in Belém, Nepal's delegation made modest but meaningful progress, securing language about mountain ecosystems in the Global Mutirão document and pushing negotiations on climate finance adaptation—a small yet significant step for Indigenous representation on the global stage.

These ongoing struggles highlight the resilience of Nepal's Indigenous peoples, who continue to protect not just their lands, but also fundamental principles of environmental stewardship, cultural preservation, and community sovereignty in the face of rapid developmental pressures.