Indigenous peoples
Operating on or near Indigenous peoples’ traditional lands brings with it responsibility and opportunity. We respect Indigenous peoples’ right to consultation and recognise ‘free, prior and informed consent’ (FPIC) as an important process to safeguard the collective rights of Indigenous peoples.
BHP acknowledges the Traditional Owners and Cultural Knowledge Holders of the lands and waters upon which we conduct our business and pays respect to them, and their Elders past and present.
Our ambition
Our ambition is to build long-term relationships with Indigenous peoples based on trust, mutual benefit and respect for their distinct cultures, rights and aspirations.
We are committed to respecting Indigenous peoples’ rights to consultation and to recognising free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) as an important process to safeguard collective rights. This ambition aligns with our purpose of bringing people and resources together to build a better world, our focus on delivering long-term social value, and our commitment to working with integrity.
Through our social value scorecard, our social value 2030 goal is to have respectful relationships that hear and act upon the distinct perspectives, aspirations and rights of Indigenous peoples and support the delivery of mutually beneficial and jointly defined outcomes.
Our approach and position
Our approach to engaging with and supporting Indigenous peoples is articulated in our BHP Indigenous Peoples Policy Statement. It is founded on respect for the distinct cultures, connections to Country, rights and aspirations of Indigenous peoples and is guided by the aims of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
Key areas of focus include:
- Indigenous partnerships: Working with Indigenous peoples to co-design outcomes that reflect their priorities and aspirations.
- Cultural heritage: Seeking to understand, avoid and mitigate adverse impacts to Indigenous cultural heritage through early planning, ongoing consultation and shared decision-making. Our processes provide opportunities for Indigenous partners to identify those sites, places, structures and objects that are culturally or traditionally significant and to be consulted and engaged in relation to decisions regarding their protection and management.
- Cultural capability: Building understanding across our workforce through cultural awareness and induction programs informed by Indigenous peoples that strengthen appreciation of Indigenous histories, rights and connections to land and waters.
- We seek to connect with Indigenous peoples to better appreciate the historical, legal, social, environmental, cultural and political landscapes where we operate or seek to operate, and how to better manage the environment we share.
Where we pursue new operations or capital projects, we aim to undertake informed and good faith consultations and to obtain consent through FPIC processes in accordance with our Policy Statement.
For our operated assets in Australia, Canada and Chile, we maintain regional Indigenous Peoples Plans that are co-designed with Indigenous peoples and set out the shared priorities and governance frameworks for our relationships. These plans include the targets of our Indigenous partnerships pillar of our social value framework, in which we aim to deliver respectful relationships and mutually beneficial and jointly defined outcomes, including Indigenous employment and procurement, with Indigenous peoples. For more information on our social value framework refer to our Social value webpage.
The Board of BHP Group Limited is ultimately accountable for overseeing the effectiveness of BHP’s risk management systems and internal controls. The Board’s Risk and Audit Committee and Sustainability Committee assist in that oversight by reviewing and considering BHP’s material risk profile on a biannual basis, as well as other subject matter specific management reports. For information on the role of the BHP Board in overseeing our approach to and delivery on sustainability refer to the Sustainability approach webpage.
Our Indigenous Peoples Policy Statement and Community and Indigenous Peoples Global Standard set out our minimum requirements for identifying, assessing and managing impacts and opportunities related to Indigenous peoples, and applies to all our operated assets, growth activities and functions in accordance with our reporting scope and boundaries. They are reviewed regularly by the Chief Legal, Governance and External Affairs Officer.
Reporting to the Chief Legal, Governance and External Affairs Officer, we have a dedicated global Human Rights and Social Performance team within our External Affairs function that develops and conducts assurance of the Community and Indigenous Peoples Global Standard and related standards for our growth activities and operated assets, as well as provides capability building across our first line teams and business relationships. Our Indigenous Engagement teams, also within our External Affairs function, provide support directly to our operated assets and conduct the day-to-day engagement with Indigenous Peoples.
Engagement with Indigenous peoples is grounded in respect, partnership and transparency. Dedicated Indigenous Engagement teams support leaders and operations to maintain strong cultural competence and to follow our approach to FPIC, cultural heritage protection, human rights risk management, procurement, employment and economic participation.
We work with Indigenous peoples through a range of mechanisms, including agreement-making processes, regional plans and reconciliation initiatives. These partnerships aim to strengthen relationships, support Indigenous participation in economic opportunities and contribute to positive social, cultural and environmental outcomes in the communities where we operate.
Our approach to Indigenous peoples is supported by the following policies and standards:
We identify and manage Indigenous peoples-related risks through an integrated risk management and due diligence process consistent with our Risk Framework.
This includes:
- identification of Indigenous peoples, social and human rights risks and impacts
- baseline studies and impact assessments
- prioritisation of risks based on severity and likelihood
- implementation of controls and mitigation measures
- ongoing monitoring, review and improvement
Complaints, grievances and events reported by Indigenous peoples are tracked and analysed to inform risk management, identify trends and support continuous improvement in controls and mitigation measures. Key risk areas include impacts on cultural heritage, land access, environmental interactions, livelihoods and business practices, such as local employment and procurement. Controls and mitigation measures include early engagement, FPIC‑aligned consultation processes, cultural heritage management practices, internal capability building and the integration of Indigenous partner feedback into planning and decision making.
We regularly assure our performance against our policies and standards, and develop improvement plans where necessary.
We report annually on our performance through our Annual Report, ESG Standards and Databook and Modern Slavery Statement.
Case Studies
Sustainability case studies, organisational boundary, definitions and disclaimers, and downloads
-
BHP Annual Report 2026pdf
-
Sustainability reporting organisational boundary, definitions and disclaimerspdf
-
Límite organizativo de los informes de sostenibilidad, definiciones y descargos de responsabilidadpdf
-
BHP ESG Standards and Databook 2026xlsx
-
BHP Group Modern Slavery Statement 2026pdf
-
BHP Annual Report 2026, Sustainability Report 7.6 Methodology for calculating Scopes 1, 2 and 3 GHG emissions
-
BHP Climate Transition Action Plan 2024, subject to updates of certain aspects of our assumptions and plans in the BHP Annual Report 2025, Operating and Financial Review 9.8 – Climate changepdf
-
Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management – Public Disclosure 2026pdf
-
Tailings Storage Facility Policy Statement 2026pdf
-
Case studies