The Permanent Forum appoints Les Malezer, a member of the Forum, to undertake a study on indigenous peoples and sustainable development, to be submitted to the Forum at its seventeenth session.
The Forum recommends that concerned State Governments conduct workshops, training courses and other programmes for indigenous peoples, on a regular basis, to enhance their interest in the cultural diversity of the world and thus increase awareness about preserving distinct indigenous peoples’ culture.
The Permanent Forum congratulates the secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity for considering the important role of indigenous peoples in its activities related to the International Year of Biodiversity in 2010 and recommends that it fund and organize a workshop on indigenous peoples and biological diversity as part of its celebration of the Year.
The Forum recognizes and applauds other indigenous fellowship programmes, in particular the fellowship programme established and funded by the regular budget of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and the newly established fellowship programme of the ILO. Furthermore, the Forum particularly recognizes the capacity-building efforts of the indigenous fellowship programme of the Office and requests that, in order to complement their Geneva based training, the indigenous fellows at the Office should participate, on an annual basis, in the sessions of the Forum. Further consideration should also be given to provide some time for training at the secretariat of the Forum, during non-sessional periods.
The Permanent Forum recommends that the United Nations Development Group, UNDP, UN-Women, UNICEF, UNFPA, WHO, UNESCO and the Department of Economic and Social Affairs provide technical and logistical support to enable the participation of indigenous peoples in processes relating to the sustainable development goals, including in conducting research, collecting good practices and replicating and promoting the contribution of indigenous peoples to sustainable and equitable development.
The Permanent Forum invites Member States to participate in informal discussions on the effective and efficient impacts of the Permanent Forum on the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, including in the contexts of biodiversity, climate change, desertification and the enjoyment of human rights by indigenous peoples, in particular efforts to combat violence against indigenous women and children. The Permanent Forum also invites Member States to enhance the effective participation of indigenous peoples in the design and implementation of efforts in the context the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development; the International Decade for Action, “Water for Sustainable Development”, 2018–2028; the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration; and the International Decade of Indigenous Languages.
The Permanent Forum calls for support to be provided to displaced Mayan and other Indigenous Peoples permanently settled in Canada and the United States so that they are visible to authorities and culturally safe as per the Declaration, while upholding the treaty and trust rights of Indigenous Peoples in North America.