The Indigenous Peoples’ Day is an event that aims at drawing wider attention to indigenous peoples’ rights and their perspectives and contributions in mitigating and adapting to climate change. It is an opportunity to take stock of what indigenous peoples have achieved in advocating for these in the Climate Change negotiations and to define the next steps on how to integrate their concerns into the agreements reached in Copenhagen and beyond. The Indigenous Peoples’ Day will facilitate dialogues between indigenous peoples' representatives and Parties to the Convention, policy makers, the scientific community on climate change, NGOs, the private sector, among others. At the same time, the Indigenous Day intends to inform the broader public about how indigenous peoples are already experiencing the adverse impacts of climate change. Indigenous peoples’ human rights are threatened both by the changes in their natural environments, and by some of the climate change adaptation and mitigation actions being implemented.
The main aim of the day is to communicate indigenous peoples’ key messages on climate change as strongly as possible. Invitations will be distributed widely.
Activities on Indigenous Peoples’ Day include:
Presentations and panel debates – indigenous representatives and some non-indigenous speakers are invited to make introductory speeches on the different panels dealing with the different themes.
Updates and discussions on the state of the negotiations at COP15 seen from an indigenous perspective – where are the negotiations right now, what implications does the draft Copenhagen agreement have for indigenous communities around the world, and to what extent does it live up to internationally agreed standards on indigenous peoples’ rights as enshrined in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and other existing international Human Rights instruments? What would be needed to bring the Copenhagen Agreement fully in line with these existing standards? And what are the needs beyond COP15?
Reception – an informal get-together that provides an opportunity for dialogue between indigenous rights activists and the various other actors around the Climate Change Convention – negotiators, NGOs, scientists, etc.. At the same time, the reception is a public event where visitors to the National Museum and journalists can meet indigenous peoples from many countries. Drinks and light snacks will be served, and there will be a short cultural programme with performances by indigenous peoples who wish to share glimpses of their culture.
Screening of documentary films from various settings in the Indigenous World - visual messages from indigenous communities around the world in which they share how they cope with climate change, and what the main challenges caused by a change in their natural resource base are right now.
Presentations and panel debates will focus on the following themes:
Human Rights and the UNFCCC – what has the UN Human Rights system said about indigenous peoples and climate change? And to what extent does the UNFCCC in the present negotiations consider human rights aspects of climate change, adaptation and mitigation? How far have we reached in putting human rights into the texts to be agreed upon in Copenhagen? Why is it important to protect indigenous peoples’ human rights in the context of the Climate Agreement(s), and what avenues can be taken to secure that in the future? How do we ensure that human rights are integrated into the national policies and programmes on climate change? How can indigenous peoples, human rights and development activists work together to ensure all this?
Indigenous peoples, Forests, Biodiversity and Climate Change – forests play a central role in the climate change negotiations, and indigenous peoples argue that their rights over their forests and their role as the primary stewards of the remaining tropical and sub-tropical forests should be recognized in this connection. We will discuss examples of indigenous peoples’ experiences and knowledge in sustainably managing forests and their recent experiences and activities related to REDD (Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation, Conservation, Sustainable Management of Forests and Enhancing Carbon Stocks). This panel will share and discuss indigenous peoples' experiences and views on REDD related issues such as the need to include in the design social safeguards (respect for indigenous peoples' rights), environmental safeguards (non-conversion of natural forests to other uses, e.g. plantations, mining, logging,etc.) and governance safeguards (mechanisms for transparency, accountability and robust monitoring and reporting processes), scope of REDD (national or subnational), funding (public, market-linked, hybrid, etc.), leakage, permanence, among others.
Climate Change, Traditional knowledge and Western Science; Convergences and Tensions – what role can indigenous peoples’ traditional knowledge play in assessing and monitoring climate change impacts and enhancing indigenous peoples' capacities to adapt to and mitigate climate change? How can western science and indigenous peoples' knowledge complement each other in the development and use of climate science? How will indigenous peoples' traditional knowledge be harnessed to assess, monitor and report on climate change-induced changes in eco-systems, as well as developing and evaluating technologies for adaptation and mitigation? What are the experiences of indigenous peoples (in particular indigenous women) in using their traditional knowledge, skills and practices on climate change and what support do they need in reinforcing and transmitting these to the younger generations? What are the tensions between climate change-related indigenous peoples' traditional knowledge and western science? How can these be resolved? What efforts are needed to get a chapter on indigenous peoples' traditional knowledge into the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)?
Local adaptation and mitigation strategies and actions - what initiatives and successful experiences have indigenous communities taken so far to adapt to existing changes in their natural resource base, how do indigenous communities contribute to mitigation of climate change, and what are the potentials for further contributions in the future? Often indigenous communities apply their traditional knowledge in creative and novel ways to adapt to climate changes. To what extent do states support (or undermine) those initiatives, and to what extent do they gain recognition for their role in mitigation? How can these initiatives be scaled-up and replicated? What roles do the indigenous women and youth play in promoting and implementing these strategies? How can these initiatives be supported through finance and technology development and transfer?
The conference is held at the National Museum in Copenhagen and is open to the public. The conference will be held in English.
Indigenous People's Day is organised by IWGIA and Tebtebba with the assistance of the National Museum and with the financial support of DANIDA and the Christensen Fund. |
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See programme (pdf)
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Speech by Sheila Watt-Cloutier:
Reframing the Debate and Reclaiming the Moral High Ground:
Indigenous Peoples, Climate Change and Human Rights
John Henriksen:
Indigenous Peoples' Day in Copenhagen on 12 December 2009 - Opening remarks
Address by the Minister for Social Affairs Ms. Maliina Abelsen on behalf of the Greenland Government
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