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Does acknowledgment under the Paris agreement of the rights of the indigenous people
require participatory climate change adaption that takes into account the traditional knowledge
A. Yes. Acknowledgment under the Paris agreement of the rights of the indigenous people
requires participatory climate change adaption that takes into account the traditional knowledge
1. Paris Agreement
a. In its preamble the Agreement states that, when taking action to address climate
change, States Parties should respect, promote and consider their respective obligations
regarding human rights, the right to health, the rights of indigenous peoples, local communities,
migrants, children, persons with disabilities and people in vulnerable situations, the right to
b. Additionally, still under the preamble of the same agreement it is recognized that “the
need to strengthen knowledge, technologies, practices and efforts of local communities and
indigenous peoples related to addressing and responding to climate change, and establishes a
platform for the exchange of experiences and sharing of best practices on mitigation and
c. Also set forth in the agreement’s Article 7, paragraph 5 is to wit: “Parties acknowledge
that adaptation action should follow a country-driven, gender responsive, participatory and fully
ecosystems, and should be based on and guided by the best available science and, as
on Biological Diversity also states that to preserve and maintain knowledge, innovations and
practices of indigenous communities that represent traditional lifestyles are important for the
conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity and promote their wider application of
such traditional knowledge, innovations and practices to encourage equitable sharing of the
benefits arising from the utilization of such knowledge, innovations and practices are subject to
national legislation.3
b. The convention further emphasizes that in the exchange of information, it shall include
a. Principle 22 of this Declaration provides that indigenous people and their communities
and other local communities play an important role in environmental management and
development because of their knowledge and traditional practices. Thus, every State should
recognize and support the indigenous people’s identity, culture and interests and enable their
people and their communities with a view to reflecting their needs and incorporating their
values and traditional and other knowledge and practices in national policies and
programmes in the field of natural resource management and conservation and other
sustainable development.6
6Agenda 21 Chapter 26. Recognizing And Strengthening The Role Of Indigenous People And Their
Communities. (paragraph 26.5)
https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/content/documents/Agenda21.pdf