The Permanent Forum urges the International Union for Conservation of Nature to establish a task force on conservation and human rights to work with indigenous peoples’ communities and organizations to clearly articulate the rights of indigenous peoples in the context of conservation initiatives and to continue to promote grievance mechanisms and avenues for redress in the context of conservation action, including the Whakatane Mechanism. The Forum invites the Union to report on progress made in the implementation of these recommendations in future sessions.
The Permanent Forum notes the valuable work carried out by indigenous communities and organizations thanks to the support of the trust fund in support of the Second International Decade and expresses its deep appreciation to the States that have contributed to the fund. However, the Forum deplores the fact that despite increasing project proposals, the funds available for grants have been diminishing. The Forum therefore strongly appeals to all States, the United Nations system, foundations and other donors to make generous contributions to the trust fund in support of the Second International Decade.
The Forum recommends that the Economic and Social Council, States and the United Nations system promote the co-administration of archaeological sites which are administered by States in order to contribute to the care, preservation and conservation of those sites and to facilitate processes of development of indigenous peoples.
The Forum recommends that WIPO undertake a study, in collaboration with Forum members, on the use of indigenous knowledge relating to medicinal plants and resources, the commercialization of such knowledge and how indigenous communities are benefiting from such commercialization.
The Permanent Forum notes the proposed Celebrate Life through Sports and Culture within the World Indigenous Nations (WIN) Games and Sports, to be held in Winnipeg, Canada, in August 2012. The Forum encourages indigenous peoples, nations and Member States to support the continuing development of sports, traditional games and culture.
The Permanent Forum recommends that the Arctic Council formally engage with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the United
Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to jointly follow up the International Experts Meeting on Climate Change and Arctic Sustainable Development: scientific, social, cultural and educational challenges (3-6 March 2009 in Monaco).
The Permanent Forum calls upon UNESCO, including its Intergovernmental Committee for the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, to step up its policies, safeguards and actions on the protection of Indigenous Peoples’ tangible and intangible cultural heritage. UNESCO safeguards that reflect robust free, prior and informed consent protocols, as prescribed by the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, could contribute to the prevention of the destruction and desecration of Indigenous Peoples’ lands and sites by public and private enterprises. Examples include mining activities of the company Rio Tinto on the ancient Aboriginal site Juukan Gorge in Western Australia and the sacred Oak Flat of the San Carlos Apache Tribe in Arizona, United States of America.
The Permanent Forum is concerned that legal obligations and commitments and indigenous peoples’ treaties, agreements and other constructive arrangements with States are routinely denied and violated by States. With regard to interventions by indigenous peoples on unresolved land rights, including the Six Nations of the Grand River and others on which the Forum has made specific recommendations in the past, the Forum calls upon States to fairly and equitably redress the long-standing unresolved land rights issues through good-faith negotiations, consistent with the United Nations Declaration and without extinguishing indigenous peoples’ land rights.
The Forum recommends that the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna facilitate the full and effective participation, including funding, of indigenous peoples, particularly women and youth, and the Forum in the work to implement these conventions, and involve them fully in policy formulation and in the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of environmental programmes or projects.
The Permanent Forum takes note of the sixth call for proposals of the Indigenous Peoples Assistance Facility of IFAD, which is focused on advancing indigenous peoples’ biodiversity conservation and sustainable management for adaptation and resilience to climate change. The Permanent Forum urges IFAD to facilitate direct access to climate financing to indigenous peoples’ communities and organizations through the Facility and the Adaptation for Smallholder Agriculture Programme, and encourages Governments and donors to support those initiatives.
The Permanent Forum urges States and bodies and organizations of the United Nations system, including the United Nations Environment Programme and the United Nations Environment Assembly, to include indigenous peoples in a fully meaningful and effective manner in decision-making processes in all areas aimed at tackling marine litter and plastic pollution, and landscape/ecosystem degradation, including in programmes and partnerships and in the future negotiations of international instruments. Such efforts should include recognition of the traditional knowledge, practices and innovations of indigenous peoples, in particular indigenous women, in plans and actions to restore landscapes and ecosystems and to address marine litter and plastic pollution.
The Forum expresses its appreciation to all those who contributed to the Trust Fund for the support of the Forum and calls upon Governments, intergovernmental organizations, foundations and non-governmental organizations to give generously to the Fund