UNESCO Webinar on Cultural policies and Indigenous Peoples: Bolstering cultural diversity and indigenous knowledge for sustainable development

On 30 November 2021, UNESCO will organize an online meeting on cultural policies and Indigenous Peoples, which is to gather representatives from national authorities on culture and institutions responsible for indigenous peoples-related policies as well as senior representatives from indigenous communities, aiming to contribute to UNESCO's ongoing reflection on cultural policies that concern Indigenous Peoples, and thereon supporting Member States in their design and implementation of policies and strategies with and for indigenous peoples.

Indigenous Peoples are repositories of knowledge, practices, worldviews, wisdom, and heritage. They are key vehicles for addressing environmental, social, economic dimensions of sustainable development. Despite their role as main guardians of biological and cultural diversity of the planet, wherever they live, Indigenous communities remain one of the most disadvantaged and marginalised populations, representing 15% of the world's population living in poverty (UN publication on the state of the world's indigenous peoples, 2010), a situation that is further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

As we enter the final decade of action for the achievement of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable development, and in face of the long-term repercussions of the COVID-19 on the cultural sector, UNESCO considers of paramount importance to identify current challenges and opportunities to foster the safeguarding of indigenous cultures, including their linguistic diversity, and their contribution to sustainable development. This is particularly relevant in the context of the United Nations International Decade of Indigenous Languages (2022-2032), for which UNESCO is the lead agency for implementation.

This webinar will provide an opportunity to reflect on key questions pertaining to cultural policies and indigenous peoples:

• What are the challenges in terms of addressing cultural policies that have an impact on indigenous peoples?
• What are the priorities to be considered to strengthen the preservation and use of Indigenous languages; to safeguard living heritage practices, promote cultural diversity and protect cultural heritage for sustainable development?
• How can UNESCO's normative instruments and programmes contribute to informing cultural policies and advancing the concerns and priorities of Indigenous Peoples?

Webinar Documents

Concept Note

English | Français | Español

Agenda

English | Français | Español

List of Participants

English | Français | Español

Public link

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