On 1994, the United Nations General Assembly decided, in its resolution 49/214, that the International Day of the World’s Indigenous People shall be observed on 9 August every year. The date marks the first meeting, in 1982, of the UN Working Group on Indigenous Populations.

This year, the day focuses on the theme The Role of Indigenous Women in the Preservation and Transmission of Traditional Knowledge.

Through a video message, the FAO Director-General QU Dongyu affirmed that recent evidence has shown that Indigenous Peoples' knowledge contains centuries of observation, adaptation and innovation, developing food systems and livelihoods that are not based on the exploitation of ecosystems, but on harmony with nature. “In these ancestral knowledge systems, Indigenous women play an essential role linked to the preservation and management of natural resources in their territories”, he added.

Indigenous women are key actors in Indigenous Peoples' food systems. They are involved in the provision of food, fodder, water and fuel, in caring of the young, the old and the sick, and for the intergenerational transmission of knowledge. They are also custodians of native seeds and manage many food-generating activities such as farming, herding, hunting, gathering, fishing and forest dwelling.

Indigenous women are the bearers of unique knowledge systems that are intrinsically related to the fauna and flora of each territory. This wealth of knowledge can include the medicinal value and food use of plants, herbs, shrubs and trees. This knowledge is contemporary and dynamic and is evolving today under constant pressure.

Indigenous women’s knowledge and activities are reliant on their relationship with Mother Earth, their territories and natural resources. Therefore, Indigenous women experience the impacts of climate change in different ways than other women and men.

To commemorate this date, the FAO Indigenous Peoples Unit in collaboration with the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Peoples Issues, will hold a twitter chat to discuss the key role of Indigenous women in the preservation and transmission of traditional knowledge. The twitter chat will take place on Tuesday August 9^th at 17:00 CEST/ 11 am EDT and you are welcome to participate!

Furthermore, FAO also has different publications that contribute to the recognition of Indigenous Women as knowledge holders, including Indigenous Women, Daughters of Mother Earth, Territorial management in Matrifocal societies, Indigenous Youth as Agents of Change, Indigenous Peoples’ food systems: Insights on sustainability and resilience from the front line of climate change, Indigenous Peoples in the Asia-Pacific Region, Sistematización de experiencia de mujeres indígenas Q’eqchi’, among others. We invite you to consult them and share them on your social networks.

On the International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples, FAO stands in solidarity with Indigenous women. We invite you to commemorate this day with activities that promote the recognition and strengthening of Indigenous women's knowledge.

Calls for action:

 v  Join the Twitter Chat to discuss the key role of Indigenous women in the preservation and transmission of traditional knowledge on 9 August at 17:00 CEST / 11 am EDT! Read the summary here. 

v  Explore the role of Indigenous women in our publication highlights!

v  Read the visual FAO Stories on Indigenous Peoples!

v  Register for the official UN virtual commemoration on 9 August 2022 at 15:00 CEST / 9 am EDT!

v  Explore, comment, like and share posts on Twitter.

v Read the opinion article by Yon Fernandez de Larrinoa, Head of the FAO Indigenous Peoples Unit. He published an Opinion Piece in El País, emphasizing that Indigenous Peoples offer the world a unique opportunity to combine their ancestral knowledge with technology and new techniques that can address the food, climate and water challenges we face. Read it here.