Global climate governance under siege: How delayed IPCC reports and corporate lobbying erode accountability in the Global South

Indigenous climate knowledge systems, such as those of the **Inuit** (who have documented Arctic ice loss for generations) or the **Kanaka Maoli** (Hawaiian environmental guardians), treat ecological collapse as an ethical crisis requiring immediate action—not delayed reports. The IPCC’s reliance on Western scientific timelines has historically sidelined Indigenous early-warning systems, such as the **2007 Arctic Indigenous Peoples’ Declaration**, which demanded urgent policy responses decades before mainstream climate science caught up. This delay is not accidental but a reflection of colonial structures that prioritize academic rigor over survival-based urgency. For example, the **Maori concept of *kaitiakitanga*** (guardianship) frames climate action as a moral duty, not a negotiable timeline.