The Permanent Forum welcomes the evaluation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples that took place in Guatemala, the results of which were presented to the experts of the Permanent Forum, the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples. The Forum recommends that similar practices be implemented by other United Nations country teams and other countries.
Indigenous culture and tourism is often seen as a driver of growth and development for the economies and businesses of indigenous peoples, with indigenous peoples often trivialized and viewed solely as cultural icons and objects by others. The Permanent Forum therefore recommends that United Nations agencies, in collaboration with the indigenous peoples concerned, affirm and make operational the right of indigenous peoples to determine their own priorities for development and opportunities concerning indigenous culture and tourism.
The Permanent Forum recommends, on the basis of articles 14 and 15 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, that States support indigenous peoples in establishing their own educational systems and institutions, including universities. Specific measures should be put in place to support indigenous, intercultural and community higher education institutions and programmes in their academic, organizational, financial and accreditation processes. An excellent example of best practices in this regard is the inclusion of compulsory indigenous studies in the curricula of higher education institutions. The Forum urges States to recognize the importance of the Higher Education Sustainability Initiative, launched during the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development of 2012, and to incorporate the knowledge, history and proposals of indigenous peoples into the activities to be undertaken.