The brainstorming session, which took place in Copenhagen, Denmark on 13 and 14 January 2012, was sponsored by the Government of Greenland, the Sami Parliament in Norway, and the International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs. It provided an opportunity to discuss issues related to the participation of indigenous peoples in the World Conference as well as the substantive issues to be discussed during this high-level meeting of the UN General Assembly to take place in 2014.
In his opening remarks at the session, the Special Rapporteur emphasized that the World Conference provides an opportunity for 1) contributing to the development of measures for the direct participation of indigenous peoples in United Nations meetings; 2) advancing greater and more concerted efforts within the UN system to advance the rights of indigenous peoples; 3) promoting action at the national and local levels to secure the realization of indigenous peoples’ rights; and 4) celebrating indigenous peoples and their contributions worldwide. The meeting convened indigenous experts and representatives from around the world, as well as representatives from the two other United Nations mechanisms focused on indigenous issues: the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues and the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.