Among the roster of official side events at the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) Twenty-Third Session, taking place April 15 through 26 at the United Nations headquarters in New York City, First Peoples Worldwide presents a training for Indigenous leaders to pursue shareholder advocacy to forward community concerns and priorities and co-presents the panel Beyond Resources: Indigenous Women’s Rights and Resilience Women in the Green Economy.
See below for more information and to register, followed by a link to the full UNPFII 2024 agenda.
Beyond Resources: Indigenous Women’s Rights and Resilience in the Green Economy
Tuesday, April 16, 2024, 3:00-4:30 pm ET - REGISTER
This side event explores the intersectionality of gender, Indigenous Peoples’ rights, and the green economy, with a specific focus on the experiences of Indigenous women in the context of extractive industries. The event aims to shed light on the unique challenges faced by Indigenous women, amplify their voices, explore pathways for empowering Indigenous women in sustainable development, and uphold their individual and collective rights.
CO-SPONSORS: First Peoples Worldwide, Securing Indigenous Peoples’ Rights in the Green Economy (SIRGE) Coalition, International Forum of Indigenous Women (FIMI), Continental Network of Indigenous Women (ECMIA), and Cultural Survival.
Location: Conference Room 5, United Nations Headquarters, 405 East 42nd Street, New York, NY, 10017; entry requires United Nations ground passes.
Shareholder Advocacy Leadership Training (SALT) Workshop: Protecting Lands, Resources and Indigenous Peoples’ Rights
Thursday April 18, 9:00 am-1:00 pm ET - REGISTER
This Shareholder Advocacy Leadership Training (SALT) workshop offers practical tools for Indigenous leaders and advocates to pursue shareholder advocacy strategies to protect their communities, resources, sacred places, and cultural practices. Participants will learn how to mobilize strategies to target companies proposing harmful projects, examine case studies that make the business case for Indigenous Peoples’ rights, and hear directly from Indigenous and investor leadership with a proven track record of creating positive outcomes through corporate engagement.
Learn more about shareholder advocacy at https://www.colorado.edu/program/fpw/about-shareholder-advocacy.
Location: Salvation Army International Social Justice Commission, 221 East 52nd Street New York, New York 10022.
Empowering Indigenous Youth in the Energy Transition
Thursday, April 18, 2024, 12:45 - 5:00 pm
Lunch provided 12:45 pm; workshop: 1:00-5:00 pm
Register by emailing Bryan Bixcul at bryan.bixcul@cs.org
The move to a low-carbon economy has been center stage for both government and business for more than a decade. As efforts to address climate change have prompted a switch from fossil fuels to “clean” energy, the demand for transition minerals used in electric vehicles, such as lithium, cobalt, copper, zinc, and nickel, has increased exponentially. While a shift in energy consumption is critical to mitigating climate change, the impact of the increased mining for these resources without Indigenous Peoples’ Free, Prior and Informed Consent poses the same threats to Indigenous Peoples’ rights, livelihoods, and territories as the fossil fuel economy.
This workshop aims to provide Indigenous youth attending the 23rd session of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) with a toolkit of legal, shareholder, and market strategies to advocate for the rights of Indigenous Peoples facing extractive industries, especially in the context of extraction for Transition Minerals. Together, we will specifically address the right to Free, Prior and Informed Consent and its implementation as a key safeguard for Indigenous Peoples’ right to self determination. During the workshop we will hear from community representatives directly threatened or affected by extractive industries.
Languages: English, Spanish, Russian.
CO-SPONSORS: Cultural Survival, First Peoples Worldwide, and Securing Indigenous Peoples’ Rights in the Green Economy (SIRGE) Coalition.
Location: Church of the Covenant 310 E 42nd St, New York, NY 10017, United States
A Just & Green Transition: Advancing Indigenous Peoples’ Rights in Lithium Mining
Friday April 19, 1:00-5:00pm – REGISTER
As a parallel event to the UNPFII Twenty-Third Session, this half-day seminar invites investors to a deeper analysis of transition minerals, Indigenous Peoples’ rights, and green economic development in South America. The first panel provides background on lithium extraction in the region and the second panel centers Indigenous leaders affected by lithium mining and their communities’ advocacy. The discussions will build shareholders’ capacity to supported impacted communities and forward a just energy transition that upholds Indigenous Peoples’ rights globally.
CO-SPONSORS: Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility, First Peoples Worldwide, and Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights.
Location: Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights office, 88 Pine St, Floor 8, New York, NY, 10005; if you would like to join virtually, please select that option in the registration form.
The theme of the UNPFII Twenty-Third Session is "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 full UNPFII agenda and schedule of side events can be found at https://social.desa.un.org/issues/indigenous-peoples/unpfii/23rd-session.