The Permanent Forum invites the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and relevant States of the Congo Basin to provide at the eighth session of the Forum, in 2009, specific information on the biosphere reserves project and how they will incorporate the indigenous peoples of the Congo Basin and their respective associations into the implementation of the project.
The Forum notes with appreciation decisions VII/16 A-1 of the Conference of Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity and its ongoing work with respect to traditional knowledge, innovations and practices of indigenous and local communities covering many areas for future works to be jointly undertaken by the Convention and the Forum.
The Permanent Forum welcomes the adoption of the Global Plan of Action for Animal Genetic Resources. It requests FAO to give priority to strategic priority No. 6 (support indigenous and local production systems and associated knowledge systems of importance to the maintenance and sustainable use of animal genetic resources), and to further develop relevant approaches to implement it, including rights-based approaches and payment for services that support the custodianship of local breeds by indigenous peoples.
The Permanent Forum recommends that Governments and States promote the creation of conditions for indigenous peoples that will enable them to maintain the forests in their traditional way and conserve their cultural identity, with priority accorded to indigenous peoples in voluntary isolation, strengthening their capacities and highlighting the value of ancestral knowledge related to native forests. The Forum further recommends that the traditional knowledge and traditional forest management practices and governance systems of indigenous peoples for the protection and use of their forests be recognized in all forest policies and climate-related forest initiatives.
The Forum recommends that the Convention on Biological Diversity and other relevant United Nations bodies such as UNEP, the Global Environmental Facility (GEF), UNDP, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the World Bank, WIPO, the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora and the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, support indigenous peoples’ organizations in order to develop capacity on research, work and proposals on human indicators applicable to the implementation of the environmental conventions and the plans and programmes of work of the Convention on Biological Diversity.
The Permanent Forum welcomes the adoption of resolution 63/278, by which the General Assembly established International Mother Earth Day and embraces indigenous peoples’ and Member States’ recommendations regarding the need to promote humankind living in harmony with nature. Therefore, the Forum decides to appoint Mr Carlos Mamani Candori and Mr Bartolome Clavero, members of the Forum as Special Rapporteurs, to conduct a study, without financial implications, on its implementation, taking into account, inter alia, the consideration and recognition of Mother Earth rights and submit a report to the ninth session of the Forum in 2010.