Indigenous Peoples
Indigenous peoples play a vital role in preserving the world’s cultural and biological diversity, yet many continue to face marginalization, extreme poverty, and human rights violations. UNESCO works to address these challenges by promoting inclusive education, preserving Indigenous languages, valuing traditional knowledge, and encouraging their full participation in decision-making. Through partnerships and initiatives like the International Decade of Indigenous Languages (2022–2032), UNESCO places the needs and rights of Indigenous peoples at the heart of its actions.
Our objectives
- Indigenous Knowledge, Ancestral Places: Navigating Change in UNESCO Designated Sites
Discover this unique resource showcasing how Indigenous Peoples sustain, adapt and transmit their knowledge and practices in the face of contemporary transformations.
Now available online!
© photo montage by UNESCO - UNESCO’s tracker training helps safeguard Indigenous knowledge
UNESCO brought together two of Africa’s remaining hunter-gatherer communities to test the CyberTracker application, which combines Indigenous knowledge with digital technology. Indigenous languages, cultures and knowledge are celebrated globally on 9 August, the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples.
© UNESCO/Fredrik Lerneryd - With UNESCO’s support, Baka and Bantu women revive weaving traditions
In Cameroon, the traditional mastery of weaving passed down from generation to generation within the Baka and Bantu communities, is now threatened with extinction Thanks to the support of UNESCO and Norway, women weavers are rediscovering and rehabilitating these ancestral practices, allowing for the preservation of endangered cultural heritage, strengthening local economic autonomy, and enhancing the role of indigenous knowledge in biodiversity conservation.
© UNESCO
