The Safeguard of Indigenous Peoples within International and EU Law on Investment. An Overview

The present contribution shows how regulatory changes have occurred within international investment law because of the political shift in the approach of a number of States and of the European Union, with the aim of revising the traditional pro-investor framework and attributing relevance to a few non-investment concerns related to sustainable development. The safeguard of the specific interests of indigenous peoples can be seen as one of these concerns. The relevance of this safeguard has however been mostly indirect, in light of the widely-accepted market-oriented conceptualization of sustainable development and of the regulatory diversification typical of international law. A few concluding remarks highlight the main reasons why a multilateral approach to international investment law might contribute to enhance the safeguard of the specific interests of indigenous peoples