The 15th session of the UN’s Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) brought Member States and over 1,000 indigenous peoples' representatives together around the theme, 'Indigenous peoples: conflict, peace and resolution.'  Held at the UN headquarters from 9-20 May 2016, the UN’s Secretary General, Ban Ki Moon, opened the session by announcing the launch of a plan to realize the full rights of indigenous peoples (IPs) who are increasingly being drawn into conflicts over their lands and resources.  The session addresses the implementation of the six mandated areas of the UNPFII with references to the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP); conflict, peace and resolution; coordination among the three UN mechanisms on indigenous affairs; and considerations on the future work of the UNPFII and emerging issues.

During this annual two-week forum, SGP organized a side event to launch a Global Indigenous Fellowship Initiative.  Ms. Yoko Watanabe, the IP Focal Point for the Global Environment Facility (GEF), opened the session with an overview on the support of GEF to indigenous peoples. Mr. Delfin Ganapin, SGP Global Manager, presented the fellowship initiative and explained that it is a result of discussions from the GEF Indigenous Peoples Advisory Group (IPAG) on methods to increase IPs’ access to GEF financing, and is a response to a need expressed by indigenous people stakeholders for capacity building and leadership skills aimed at enabling them to strongly represent themselves in policy setting and development planning.  Mr. Ganapin also presented the fellowship initiative’s objectives, types, priority themes as well as the selection process and timeline of activities.  Lastly, representatives of indigenous peoples such as Ms. Yolanda Teran (Kichwa, Ecuador) of the Red de Mujeres and GEF IPAG and Mr. Onel Masardule (Kuna Yala, Panama) of the International Indigenous Forum on Biodiversity (IIFB) and Global ICCA Consortium presented the fellowship’s rationale and feedback from consultation meetings,  and reflected on additional capacity-building needs for IP.

During the forum, Mr. Terence Hay-Edie, SGP Advisor on Biodiversity and IP Focal Point, participated as a panel member in two other side events.  On May 12, Mr. Hay-Edie took part in the launch of a user guide for Indigenous Peoples on how to access GEF financing.  On May 16, he joined Mr. Owen Shumba from UNDP’s Livelihoods and Economic Recovery Team and IP representatives from Hawaii and Panama as key speakers on the ‘Community responses to climate-driven migration’ side event hosted by UNDP’s Equator Initiative.  Discussions focused on the integral role of IPs and of traditional knowledge in adapting to climate change, and the importance of bridging native with western science. Mr. Hay-Edie presented the various adaptive strategies of IPs living in diverse landscapes, ranging from tropical forests, arid deserts, small islands and the arctic tundra. Given that IPs often follow natural resources, he noted that migration has been used for generations as a finely adapted strategy based on traditional ecological knowledge.

Lastly, SGP took this opportunity to meet with several partners such as WIN, Conservation International, Tribal Link, GEF Indigenous Peoples Advisory Group (IPAG), the World Bank Dedicated Grant Mechanism (DGM), the Global ICCA Consortium and the Ford Foundation to enhance and expand their partnerships with IPs through continued dialogue and feedback from their network of partners.