Planning sustainable development within ancestral domains: Indigenous people's perceptions in the Philippines

In the Philippines, planning for development of Indigenous lands, including for economic development, is encapsulated in Ancestral Domain Sustainable Development and Protection Plans. The current framework for such plans is based on a template produced by the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples. We asked Indigenous peoples from 10 communities on Mindanao Island what they thought constituted a good planning system for sustainable development within ancestral domains. We asked specifically about the resources and processes that they considered important and what the content of the plan should be. Informants valued participatory and inclusive processes, but also appreciated external financial and technical support. While economic upliftment is strongly desired, there was also a general feeling that, more Indigenous knowledge should be incorporated into the plans, and that means to revitalise Indigenous culture and ways of knowing should form part of plan strategies. Results also reflected a conception of a world that is shared with mystical beings, with the land itself being sacred and at the core of people's lives. A communal ethic of equity, reciprocity and sharing was also considered important. The national planning framework, however, seemed ill-equipped to protect the integrity and sacredness of ancestral domains against mainstream development.