Concluding today, a UN meeting on the impact of climate change on indigenous peoples has voiced the need for concerted action to be taken to protect traditions and livelihoods.

Below is an article published by the Winnipeg Sun:

Aboriginal communities in Canada and around the world will be among the most gravely affected by the effects of climate change, and more attention should be paid to changes in their traditional ways of life to help gauge the onset of global warming, United Nations researchers said yesterday [2 April 2008].

The Arctic is the world's climate-change barometer, and the experiences of the aboriginals who live there should be closely scrutinized by researchers and politicians around the world, says the report for the UN's economic and social council, which was discussed at a meeting of experts in Australia.

"Because (the Arctic) is an early indicator of climate change for the rest of the world and because its coastal indigenous peoples are at this time particularly vulnerable, UN member states and agencies should designate the Arctic region as a special climate change focal point," the report recommends.

"It is distressing to note that indigenous issues are virtually never mentioned (in climate change talks) even though countries like Russia, Canada and the United States are home to substantial indigenous populations."

Researchers highlighted experiences in Nunavut and the boreal forest as harbingers of trouble for the rest of the world and evidence that the effects of climate change will be obviously apparent.

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Note:

To access the documents of the International Expert Group Meeting on Indigenous Peoples and Climate Change held in Darwin, Australia between 2-4 April 2008, please click here.