Sign on to our collective statement.

Agenda item.1 Opening of the meeting (07.12.202)

Statement on behalf of the International Indigenous Forum on Biodiversity (IIFB) delivered by John Cheechoo, Assembly of First Nation (AFN), Kenneth Deer Indigenous World Association

Amidst the strength and power of the Columbia and Spokane Rivers in the ancestral territories of the Spokane Tribe, there is a group of language warriors with the dream of keeping their languages alive. They run the Language House of Spokane using an immersion strategy to increase the number of fluent adult speakers.

From December 7-19, 2022, in Montreal, Canada, the 15th Conference of Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP15) is bringing together the countries who are parties to the Convention and various observer stakeholders, including Indigenous Peoples.

On November 29, 2022, the Caribbean Court of Justice heard arguments in the case Maya Leaders Alliance v The Attorney General of Belize regarding the compliance of the State of Belize with the court’s 2015 decision in favor of Maya land rights. 

The Rohingya Language Preservation Project is a Rohingya youth-led research initiative based in the refugee camps in Co’s Bazar, Bangladesh. They seek to preserve the Rohingya language and culture in the refugee camps and beyond. They believe in creating grassroots change through community-led projects that strengthen the capacity and leadership of Rohingya youth in the community. They collaborate and engage with leaders, individuals and groups within the Rohingya society that rebuild and empower the community. 

World Soil Day is held annually on December 5 as a means to focus attention on the importance of healthy soil and to advocate for the sustainable management of soil resources. For generations, Indigenous Peoples have shaped landscapes through a reciprocal relationship with the land, thus preserving healthy ecosystems. The connection to the land is mutually tied with Indigenous worldviews. Supporting traditional farming for Indigenous communities is vital. 

On Sunday, July 19, 2020, five men, including four Garífuna, were taken at gunpoint from their homes in the community of Triunfo de la Cruz, Honduras, by unidentified men dressed in uniforms belonging to the Honduran Police Investigation Directorate.

In September 2022, Cultural Survival and our partner Asociación Sobrevivencia Cultural submitted an alternative report for the 72nd session of the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR).

The following is an appeal sent by various anti-war movements of Indigenous Peoples of Siberia and Indigenous activists to the United Nations in October 2022. The signees address the Russian Federation’s current mobilization order and its impact on Indigenous communities in the Sakha Republic. They call on the UN for assistance with Indigenous draftees needing asylum and seek solidarity and support from the international community. They make known their fervent denouncement of the violence and destabilization Russia has wrecked upon Ukraine in its unjust war on the sovereign nation.