The Secretariat of the Convention for Biological Diversity organized three workshops in Panajachel, Guatemala in June 2015 related to Article 8(j) of the Convention, which deals with indigenous peoples and local communities and traditional knowledge: an “International Training Workshop on Community – Based Monitoring, Indicators on Traditional Knowledge and Customary Sustainable Use and Community Protocols, within the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020″ on 8-10 June; a “Dialogue Workshop on Assessment of Collective Action of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities in Biodiversity Conservation and Resource Mobilization” on 11-13 June; and an “Expert Meeting on the Repatriation of Traditional Knowledge Relevant to the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Biological Diversity” on 14-15 June.

IPSI Secretariat staff were happy to see many representatives of IPSI member organizations in attendance. Mr. William Dunbar of the Secretariat was invited as an expert for the first two workshops, and gave presentations on the Indicators of Resilience in Socio-ecological Production Landscapes and Seascapes project and its relevance to community-based monitoring and resource mobilization in the CBD financial reporting framework.

More information on the workshops, including background reading and presentation files, can be found on the CBD website here.