IPCC Requests Indigenous Input

Important Announcement to all Indigenous persons involved in Indigenous Knowledge as it pertains to climate change in any way:

Friend and Colleague Tero Mustonen of Snowchange in Finland has announced that submission statements about Indigenous Knowledge are being solicited for the next IPCC report. The call for statements, which may be found in its entirety here, begins:

“The importance and relevance of Indigenous Knowledge and Local Knowledge in responding to the challenge of anthropogenic climate change is recognized by policymakers and academics. The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) in itsrecent Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystems Services underscores the key contributions of Indigenous peoples and local communities to conservation and fostering of biodiversity. Although the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) acknowledges the importance of Indigenous Knowledge and Local Knowledge (IKLK), the inclusion of non-published IKLK remains beyond the scope of the Sixth Assessment Report. This request for submissions seeks contributions from Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities to the Global Report of Indigenous Knowledge and Local Knowledge on Climate Change 2020. We expect that this report will document, among other things, how holders of IKLK observe, forecast and respond to anthropogenic climate change. In doing so, the report will constitute an invaluable input to be considered in the Working Group II contribution to the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report.”

If you or your group wish to submit an Indigenous knowledge statement, the DEADLINE HAS BEEN CONTINUED to 15th OCTOBER. (Notice this an extension goes beyond the original deadline of May 31 posted in the linked document.)

Complete instructions for submission are on the Snowchange website linked above, but here is a brief overview:

“We invite all relevant stakeholders to contribute to the Indigenous and Local Knowledge Report 2020. Submissions are especially welcomed from Indigenous and local knowledge holders, organisations and communities. All submissions are following free, prior and informed consent (FPIC). Submissions will remain the intellectual property of the authors, but by submitting to this initiative, author(s) agree to share their contributions universally for the IndigenousKnowledgeand Local Knowledge Report 2020. We welcome 2-3 page submissions (max.2000 words) on all aspects of Indigenous Knowledge and Local Knowledge related to climate change. Submissions may include, but are not limited to, oral history, worldviews, observed changes, forecasts, impacts, responses, human and Indigenous rights, ecological restoration, conflict, equity issues, and so on. Submissions should include the location, community, and name(s) as well as communications details of the submitting entities and/or individuals. . . . All submissions should be sent via email to ilk2020ipcc@gmail.com (an email repository accessed only by the report editors). Information can be received from editors at tero.mustonen@snowchange.org.”