Indigenous Youth at the center of the discussions in New York at the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues

The 23rd Session of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) that started today at the UN in New York is particularly strategic for FAO´s work and mandate. From the 15 - 26 April, more than 150 Indigenous Youth, with Indigenous leaders and elders from the seven socio-cultural regions of the world alongside Member States, UN Agencies and NGOs are gathered to discuss the centrality of Indigenous Youth, through this year´s UNPFII's theme, "Enhancing Indigenous Peoples' right to self-determination in the context of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples: emphasizing the voices of Indigenous Youth".

The UNPFII is a high- level advisory body to the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) established on 2000 as one of the three UN Mechanisms on Indigenous Peoples Issues with the mandate to deal with issues related to economic and social development, culture, education, health and human rights.

Coinciding with the ECOSOC Youth Forum this week, the UNPFII connects FAO´s work with Indigenous youth to discussions happening in New York. The close collaboration between the FAO Indigenous Peoples Unit and the Global Indigenous Youth Caucus (GIYC) since 2016, led to ECOSOC and UNDESA issuing a recommendation in 2019 for FAO to organize a UN Forum dedicated to Indigenous Youth in Rome.

In October 2023, at FAO headquarters in Rome, the II Session of the UN Global Indigenous Youth Forum (UNGIYF) was opened by the Chair of the UNPFII and the Chair of the Expert Mechanism on Indigenous Peoples (EMRIP). The UNGIYF brought together 186 Indigenous Youth from the seven socio-cultural regions to discuss about the future of Indigenous Peoples' food and knowledge systems, climate change adaptations, biodiversity protection, and the impacts of ultra-processed foods. The Indigenous Youth 2023 Rome Declaration on Safeguarding Seven Generations in times of Food, Social, and Ecological Crisis outlines key messages, recommendations and calls to action to safeguard the next 7 generations.

The outcomes of the UNGIYF will directly feed into the 23rd Session of the UNPFII. Today, the Under Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, Mr. Li Junhua, opened the UNPFII with a warm welcome to the Indigenous Peoples' delegations, UN Agencies, Member States and NGOs present at the General Assembly Hall.

The opening was followed with the election of the new Chair and the Bureau of the UNPFII. Expert member, Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim from Chad, was elected new Chair receiving from the salient Chair, Dario Mejia Montalvo a baton of the UNPFII leadership and a violet shawl. The tradition of passing this violet shawl from each chair to the next began in 2017 and originated from FAO's Indigenous Women's campaign, the shawl symbolizes those Indigenous Women not invited to the policy discussions.

FAO takes this opportunity to thank Dario Mejia Montalvo for his excellent leadership and collaborations, and we look forward to continuing the work with Chair Hindou Ouamarou Ibrahim, with whom the FAO Indigenous Peoples Unit has been continuously working since the creation of the Pastoralist Knowledge Hub.

Along with the new Chair, the UNPFII confirmed new Vice-Chairs of the 23rd Session: Keith M. Harper (North America); Aluki Kotierk (Canada); Hannah McGlade (Australia); Hanieh Moghani (Islamic Republic of Iran); Rodrigo Eduardo Paillalef Monnard (Chile) and the Rapporteur is Suleiman Mamutov (Ukraine).

The opening remarks of the UN Under Secretary Li Junhua, emphasized the importance of working with Indigenous Youth beyond the UNPFII, and the opening speeches by the Chair Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim, the Vice President of Bolivia H.E. David Choquehuanca Céspedes, and the Minister of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil H.E. Sônia Guajajara, confirms the vision of work of FAO with Indigenous Youth and sets a clear way forward on the objectives ahead.

FAO will actively participate with in a dedicated session to brief all Permanent Forum members on the II Session of the UN Global Indigenous Youth Forum in Rome last October. Furthermore, FAO has co-organized 3 side-events and will participate in bilateral meetings and discussions with Indigenous leaders and connecting the work with the Coalition of Indigenous Peoples' Food Systems.

The FAO side-events will report on the outcomes of the UN Global Indigenous Youth Forum and build upon the insights from the Coalition on Indigenous Peoples' Food Systems. The third side-event is in partnership with the Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO) on sharing good practices on access to culturally relevant healthcare for Indigenous Youth.

Follow the events both in-person and online:

Juventudes Indígenas del Abya Yala: Tejiendo historias y resiliencia para la aplicación de la Declaración de Naciones Unidas sobre los derechos de los Pueblos Indígenas

17 April 2024 - 10:00 - 11:15am (GMT -4)

Conference Room F - UN Headquarters - New York

Link for the livestream at: https://www.fao.org/new-york/events/detail/fao-at-the-23rd-session-of-the-un-permanent-forum-on-indigenous-issues/en

Indigenous Youth as game-changers in biodiversity conservation, nutrition and food systems transformation

Insights from the Coalition on Indigenous Peoples' Food Systems

22 April 2024 - 13:15pm (GMT -4)

Conference room 6 - UN Headquarters - New York

Link for the livestream at: https://www.fao.org/indigenous-peoples/coalition/en/

Calls to Action for Safeguarding Seven Generations in Times of Food, Social and Ecological Crises

Reporting on the Outcomes of the 2023 UN Global Indigenous Youth Forum (UNGIYF)

23 April 2024 - 11:30am (GMT -4)

Conference room 11 - UN Headquarters - New York

Link for the livestream at: https://www.fao.org/indigenous-peoples/ungiyf/en/