Land is Life, along with Indigenous partners from the Philippines and the Democratic Republic of Congo, will present new initiatives next week at the 2018 IFIP Annual Funders Conference in Sante Fe, New Mexico. The panels will be moderated by supporters of the new work, the David & Lucile Packard Foundation, and Lush Charity Pot. Learn more below!
Building Empowerment through Women-Led Conservation DRC:
Founded in 2004 by Mbuti Pygmies in the Democratic Republic of Congo, DIPY works through direct grassroots actions as well as local, national and international advocacy efforts for the well-being of Pygmies and the conservation the Congo basin. Moderated by Kai Carter of the David & Lucile Packard Foundation, DIPY founder Sinafasi Makelo and his colleague Ibula Bolondo Brunelle, will discuss the importance of Indigenous women-led initiatives and their experience working at the grassroots to improve livelihoods while conserving traditional lands and territories. The panel will present and review the findings of a recent six-month study that analyzed the potential of women-led cooperatives throughout DRC.
Engaging Indigenous LGTBQ Youth and National Dialogue in the Philippines:
In most Indigenous communities in the Philippines, men dominate decision-making, traditional rituals, and community affairs and look down on LGBTQ peoples. While LGBTQ issues are gaining acceptance, the older generation continues to discriminate. Very few Indigenous-rights organizations focus on LGBTQ issues due to the urgent priority of protecting land rights. Securing financial and human resources for LGBT rights work is difficult. This session will give members of Innabuyog and the Cordillera Peoples Alliance, leading Indigenous organizations dedicated to LGBT rights in the Philippines, to discuss a new initiative that will improve their grassroots operations and systems while elevating LGBTQ issues and activists into the broader Indigenous-rights movement through research, training workshops, knowledges exchanges and regional and national dialogues. Their goal is to train and empower the next generation of Indigenous LGBTQ leaders and generate a national conversation about discrimination and rights. Moderated by Lush Charity Pot, the panel hopes to generate broader ideas about how to build off this work and apply it to Indigenous- rights and LGBTQ efforts globally.
