Ministry Statements & Speeches:
Thank you Mr President.
We acknowledge the importance of this year’s discussion on a possible Earth Assembly in 2024. It is important to continue partnering with Indigenous Peoples on environmental issues and the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Aotearoa New Zealand calls on states to work in partnership with Indigenous Peoples, as indigenous knowledge and traditions are important for tackling climate change and other issues around biodiversity loss.
Traditional Māori knowledge and customs are an integral part of the management and sustainable use of their land and tāonga (or treasures).
We acknowledge the deep connection that Indigenous Peoples have with the environment and its resources. Mātauranga Māori is the traditional knowledge system that underpins a way of life. It acknowledges that when the land is well, so are the people. As we address climate-related challenges, we need to develop collective solutions and be guided by the knowledge of Indigenous Peoples.
In Aotearoa New Zealand, we are focused on the need to take steps to create systems that protect these key components of our indigenous culture and biodiversity, so that future generations can be afforded the same and greater opportunities of these crucial understandings of our world.
We have a foundational work programme where we are developing domestic policies to enable active protection and appropriate use of traditional knowledge, traditional cultural expressions, genetic resources, and indigenous biodiversity.
In Aotearoa New Zealand, legal personhood has been granted to three different natural entities. The granting of legal personhood to the Urewera forest in 2014, and the Awa Tupua (Whanganui River) and Taranaki mountain in 2017, were innovative solutions to the challenge of settling indigenous grievances related to the ownership of significant natural features, whilst ensuring environmental and conservation aims and ongoing public access.
In Aotearoa New Zealand’s experience, we have found that recognising the Rights of Nature can be an effective environmental management and conservation strategy and can also elevate partnerships with Indigenous Peoples, by reinforcing the importance of biodiversity to Indigenous Peoples, their role as guardians and the place of traditional knowledge in restoring nature.
Thank you Mr President.