The Indigenous Rights Journalism Partnership (IRJP) is a core IC program that centers on building strategic partnerships with non-profit organizations, university professors, journalists, news corporations and indigenous governments in order to increase local, regional and international awareness and understanding of indigenous affairs and perspectives.
Established in 2016, the IRJP establishes partnerships in the following key areas:
Collaborative Reporting – Connecting journalists with Indigenous communities to produce stories that highlight rights struggles, cultural resurgence, and grassroots resistance movements.
Academic Engagement – Partnering with university professors and students to integrate Indigenous rights reporting into curricula, creating pathways for future journalists and researchers to engage ethically with Indigenous issues.
Media Partnerships – Working with news corporations and independent outlets to expand coverage of Indigenous stories beyond tokenism, ensuring they reach mainstream and international audiences.
Capacity Building – Supporting Indigenous governments and organizations in developing their own communications strategies, media literacy, and storytelling platforms to strengthen self-representation.
Advocacy Through Journalism – Using investigative reporting and multimedia storytelling to hold governments and corporations accountable for policies and actions that impact Indigenous lands, rights, and cultures.
By bringing together diverse partners, the IRJP strengthens a global ecosystem of Indigenous-centered journalism that informs, educates, and inspires action. It reflects IC’s founding belief that Indigenous stories must be told by, with, and for Indigenous peoples—and that building networks of solidarity is essential to advancing justice.
