Indigenous Peoples and Higher Education: Considering the issue from a human rights perspective

Keith Holmes, Mari Yasunaga, and Paz Portales

This round table discussion uses a human rights perspective to explore collectively how higher education could be reimagined to address the rights, needs and interests of Indigenous Peoples, in the context of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

From a human rights perspective, education and indigenous peoples have been considered in two different and complementary aspects. On one hand, indigenous peoples are holders of the right to education as individuals and as a collective. As such, their cultural, spiritual, linguistic and traditional knowledge can be sustained through the means of an inclusive and participatory education. On the other hand, indigenous knowledge, skills and competences represent substantial pieces of human wisdom and heritage, which implies that Indigenous People should be key actors in the development of inclusive higher education policies, systems, institutions, programmes and practices.

Participants will have the opportunity to contribute to a new UNESCO initiative which aims to contribute to improving the access of Indigenous Peoples to inclusive and equitable quality and relevant higher education, recognizing that ‘Indigenous Peoples’ and ‘Higher Education’ are new elements featuring in global education agenda, SDG4-Education 2030. This initiative will compile and produce up-to-date information and knowledge from a comparative and international perspective and establish a network on Indigenous Peoples and Higher Education to act as a sounding board and a laboratory of ideas.