SAPPORO — Indigenous peoples will be the hardest hit by climate change because of their dependence on "Mother Earth," Ben Powless, a native Mohawk from Canada, told a convention of nongovernmental organizations Monday.

In one of the subcommittees at the People's Summit 2008, also called the Alternative Summit, Powless said climate change will harm indigenous peoples all over the world with food insecurity, decreased water resources and loss of cultural sites and traditions.

Climate change will also force a large number of indigenous people off their land, turning them into climate refugees, Powless said.