The Permanent Forum again urges Member States to ensure that Indigenous Peoples are afforded full and effective participation in all planning and policy development to address climate change. Indigenous-led climate change policies incorporate the vital knowledge of Indigenous Peoples for land management and stewardship of natural resources while protecting health, equity, justice and sustainability. Principles of free, prior and informed consent must be followed in the development of all climate change policies and actions.
The Permanent Forum reminds the Secretary-General, through the Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights, on the continuing relevance of monitoring and reporting on trends related to intimidation and reprisals against Indigenous Peoples who seek to engage with the United Nations. Indigenous Peoples’ representatives have a right to be protected from reprisals for their participation in meetings at the United Nations, including the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues and the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
The Permanent Forum urges the States members of the World Intellectual Property Organization to ensure the full participation of Indigenous People, including developing safeguards to protect their knowledge and adopting a treaty to protect Indigenous Peoples’ genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge and medicine, at the Diplomatic Conference on Genetic Resources and Associated Traditional Knowledge to be held in 2024.
The Permanent Forum acknowledges the existence of gender-diverse Indigenous Peoples, including two-spirit peoples, worldwide, and calls upon the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Indigenous Peoples to ensure that two -spirit Indigenous Peoples are not prevented from participating in United Nations processes.