Climate change is the most grievous threat of the 21st century and disproportionately affects politically marginalised communities such as Indigenous peoples. As custodians of approximately 80% of the planet’s biodiversity, Indigenous cultures have practised sustainable management of ecosystems and resources over millennia providing vital pathways for humanity to better mitigate accelerating climate change impacts.

This systematic review centres planning, policy and/or strategic developments and implementation of climate change adaptation with Indigenous groups in Australia, Pacific Islands, Canada and the United States. We used PRISMA protocols to search five databases. The search was organised around three core areas: Indigenous people groups, climate change strategic planning, and Indigenous knowledge and active participation. A total of 6,338 articles from five databases were identified. Records were screened by title and abstract, leaving 87 articles that were assessed by full text. A total of 22 studies were included.

This article reports the findings of a two-year transdisciplinary research project that explored the implications of climate change for the security and safety of drinking water supplies in three communities in Te Hiku o te Ika in Aotearoa New Zealand. In this region, potable water comes mainly from “roof and tank” systems. The project was designed as integrative Kaupapa Māori research utilising climate science, microbiology and social science to develop community-oriented approaches for dealing with the complex issues at the nexus of climate change.