Indian Law Resource Center

09/26/2026

09/25/2026

Last week, the 53rd session of the WIPO Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore (IGC) was held in Geneva. ILRC Staff Attorney, Gianella Sanchez, presented on a panel focused on the Positive and Defensive Protection of Traditional Knowledge and Traditional Cultural Expressions using Intellectual Property. Other panelists included: Dr. Terri Janke, Dr. Hai-Yuean Tualima, Ms. Lesle Jansen – representing regions from Sweden, Africa, Australia, and Samoa.

Gianella discussed the Peruvian Indigenous experience and the challenges faced in implementing Law 27811. When it was adopted, this was an innovative legal framework for the protection of Indigenous Peoples’ traditional knowledge. However, after more than two decades, a deeper analysis of its efficacy and consider how the framework can respond to the realities Indigenous Peoples face today is necessary.

Law 27811 focuses primarily on traditional knowledge associated with biological resources. However, it does not fully address the wide range of Traditional Cultural Expressions, nor does it necessarily reflect the interconnected nature of Indigenous cultural systems. From an Indigenous perspective, the boundaries that intellectual property law establishes between TK and TCEs do not always correspond to how knowledge, culture, identity, art, territory, and spirituality are experienced and transmitted within our communities.

lLRC continues to explore the impacts and ongoing policy changes that are created to protect Indigenous peoples, by including Indigenous experience and perspective.

09/23/2026

👩🏾‍🏫 | ¡No te pierdas el VI Seminario de nuestra Escuela de Gobierno Indígena y Desarrollo Amazónico (EGIDA)!

En esta jornada dialogaremos y reflexionaremos sobre los derechos de propiedad intelectual de los pueblos indígenas, abordando su importancia para la protección de los conocimientos tradicionales, expresiones culturales y otros saberes de nuestros pueblos.

🔰Tema: Derechos de Propiedad Intelectual de los Pueblos Indígenas.
🍃 Expositora: Gianella Sánchez Guimaraes, abogada de ILRC.
📅 Fecha: 30 de septiembre del 2026.
🕒 Hora: de 5 a 7 p.m.
📍 Vía zoom, previa inscripción aquí: https://forms.gle/CKEDaGFRNL2PScmd8

¡Separa la fecha! 📢

09/17/2026

The Amazon Research Consortium for Climate Change and One Health (ARC) is hosting a workshop on September 21-22, 2026, at Duke University, and ILRC Field Evaluation Coordinator, Ermeto Tuesta, will join the panel for the "Local and Indigenous Knowledge Systems for Resilience” session (Day 1 - 2:00 p.m. EST).

This panel will explore and help prioritize key gaps in understanding and integrating local and Indigenous perspectives to address complex challenges across the Amazon. Ermeto will share his expertise and experience providing technical assistance with mapping and land titling to Indigenous communities in South America.

Created two years ago through collaboration among policymakers and research scientists, ARC works to build more effective and expansive interdisciplinary partnerships focused on research, health systems, and community-based advocacy in response to the environmental, social, economic, and health interconnected challenges in the Amazon. ARC’s work is grounded in these core commitments:

✨️ Integrating Science and Community Wisdom
✨️ Building Capacity and Leadership
✨️ Enhancing Community Partnerships and Engagement
✨️ Driving Research and Innovation
✨️ Promoting Health and Climate Resilience

We’re proud that Ermeto will bring his experience working alongside Indigenous communities to this important conversation and will contribute to efforts that center Indigenous knowledge, strengthen partnerships, and support community-based advocacy.

Day 1 - Zoom Link: https://duke.zoom.us/j/8565372240?pwd=dmdVS09ybWxzTzJhUDhoU2hBWVBjQT09&omn=95177185898

Monday Keynote Address - Zoom Link: https://unc.zoom.us/j/96450625243?pwd=tRdSyNaZRUSrmUHT2YtRO7rrpPnoef.1 (password: onehealth)

Day 2 - Zoom Link: https://duke.zoom.us/j/8565372240?pwd=dmdVS09ybWxzTzJhUDhoU2hBWVBjQT09&omn=98448564732

Note: Virtual attendees will be able to observe the presentations but will not be able to engage with the workshops. Simultaneous Spanish-English translation will be provided by the Duke Center for Latin America and Caribbean Studies.

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El Consorcio de Investigación Amazónico sobre el Cambio Climático y One Health (ARC) organizará un taller los días 21 y 22 de septiembre de 2026 en la Universidad de Duke, y el Coordinador de Evaluación de Campo del ILRC, Ermeto Tuesta, participará en la mesa redonda de la sesión “Sistemas de conocimiento locales e indígenas para la resiliencia”.
Esta mesa redonda analizará y ayudará a priorizar las principales brechasen la comprensión e integración de las perspectivas locales e indígenas para abordar los complejos retos que se plantean en toda la Amazonía. Ermeto compartirá sus conocimientos y su experiencia en la brindando asistencia técnica en materia de cartografía y titulación de tierras a las comunidades Indígenas de Sudamérica.
Creado hace dos años gracias a la colaboración entre responsables políticos e investigadores científicos, el ARC trabaja para establecer alianzas interdisciplinarias más eficaces y amplias centradas en la investigación, los sistemas sanitarios y la defensa de los derechos desde las comunidades, en respuesta a los retos interrelacionados de carácter medioambiental, social, económico y sanitario en la Amazonía. El trabajo del ARC se basa en estos compromisos fundamentales:
• Integrar la ciencia y la saberes comunitarios
• Desarrollar capacidades y liderazgo
• Potenciar las alianzas y la participación de las comunidades
• Impulsar la investigación y la innovación
• Promover la salud y la resiliencia climática
Estamos orgullosos de que Ermeto aporte su experiencia de trabajo junto a las comunidades indígenas a este importante debate y contribuya a los esfuerzos que sitúan el conocimiento indígena en el centro, fortalecen las alianzas y apoyan la defensa de los derechos basada en la comunidad.
La inscripción para acceder a los enlaces de Zoom se encuentra en nuestro «Link Tree».
Nota: Los asistentes virtuales podrán seguir las presentaciones, pero no podrán participar en los talleres. El Centro de Estudios sobre América Latina y el Caribe de la Universidad de Duke proporcionará interpretación simultánea entre español e inglés.

09/16/2026

In early September, the Alaska Native Women’s Resource Center hosted the "Wellness, Healing, and Hope Summit: Culture as Our Best Protective Factor” in Anchorage, Alaska. Indian Law Resource Center was honored to present on the Safe Women, Strong Nations’ art as advocacy project, “Woven in Place.” This event was anchored in the collective resilience and healing that Native advocates experience through gathering and sharing with one another. ILRC joined other partners including the Data for Indigenous Justice, Pouhana O Nā Wāhine, and Tribal leaders in presenting material to strengthen advocates for Native women and communities.





Read more about our project, “Woven in Place,” on our website.
www.indianlaw.org/resources

09/13/2026

From its adoption in 2007 to milestones that have shaped the global movement for Indigenous Peoples’ rights, UNDRIP’s history reflects years of progress, advocacy, and continued action.

As the Declaration marks its 19th anniversary, progress toward realizing the rights it affirms continues alongside the work needed to translate these commitments into meaningful change.

19 years. 46 articles. One ongoing commitment to advancing the rights of Indigenous Peoples.



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Desde su adopción en 2007 hasta los hitos que han marcado el movimiento mundial en favor de los derechos de los Pueblos Indígenas, la historia de la Declaración de las Naciones Unidas sobre los Derechos de los Pueblos Indígenas (UNDRIP) refleja años de avances, defensa y acción constante.

Ahora que la Declaración cumple su 19.º aniversario, continúan los avances hacia la realización de los derechos que consagra, junto con el trabajo necesario para traducir estos compromisos en un cambio significativo.

19 años. 46 artículos. Un compromiso constante con la promoción de los derechos de los Pueblos Indígenas.

09/11/2026

On September 1, nearly 50 Indigenous women convened for the First Gathering of Women of the Rio Branco Indigenous Territory and REBIO Guaporé. This was a pivotal event as it was the first time Indigenous women from this region came together in a space to speak collectively about their experiences, affirm their rights, and identify what needs to change on systematic levels.

Over three days in Jatobá Village, Rondônia, Brazil, Indigenous women participated in roundtable discussions and talking circles focused on the intersection of land rights and women’s rights. They discussed gender-based violence, territorial management as a means of protection and prevention, elder abuse, access to education and healthcare, the impacts of small hydroelectric plants, and sustainable economic development.

Participants drafted a collective letter outlining their concerns and demands, and on the last day of the event, delivered it directly to representatives from state and federal government agencies responsible for Indigenous health, education, territorial rights, rural development, and Indigenous affairs.

The Center’s Miranda Carman and Kari Guajajara joined the gathering alongside representatives from ANMIGA (National Network of Indigenous Women Warriors of Ancestry), KANIDÉ (Association for Ethno-Environmental Defense), AmazoniAlerta Institute, OPI (Observatory on the Human Rights of Isolated and Recently Contacted Indigenous Peoples), and the Lutheran Diaconia Foundation.

The gathering also marks the beginning of a new partnership with the Associação Indígena Wãipa, building on the advocacy work of our Indigenous Lands Initiative (ILI) and our Safe Women, Strong Nations Project (SWSN).

We believe that advancing Indigenous women’s rights, including their rights to land and safety, starts with creating spaces where Indigenous women can speak openly, safely, and collectively about what they need and where we can listen and learn from their lived experience. Supporting Indigenous women’s rights to live free from violence is central to our SWSN work and to our ILI Project. It is inseparable from the rights to land, self-government, health, and the ability to shape the future of their own communities.

This gathering was an important first step. The Indigenous women who came together are now carrying their collective demands forward, and we will be standing alongside in support.

09/10/2026

On Monday, the annual Mackinac Bridge Walk took place between St. Ignace and Mackinaw City, Michigan. This year, Michigan’s 12 tribes gathered as a call to action for the protection of the Great Lakes. Anishinaabe relatives carried water to honor and protect the waters and surrounding lands.

Caroline LaPorte, senior attorney and director of the Safe Women, Strong Nations initiative, participated in the 10-mile walk. She states, “Water is our living relative, and being able to walk with so many tribal citizens, descendants, and community members to honor nibi was incredible. Many people—not just Anishinaabe people—care deeply about the Great Lakes. While this walk was certainly about protecting our 1836 Treaty rights, honoring and protecting our relative, and ensuring that future generations can inherit a way of living that is sustainable and helps all community members thrive— I spent most of the walk thinking about the relative this water is to my family. When my grandfather Francis was placed in an Indian Boarding School at Holy Childhood in Harbor Springs, this water was always with him, and when he and his brother ran from that place, this water helped him get to safety. I like to believe that he and his brother were walking with me this week.”

The Indian Law Resource Center is proud to stand with the 12 tribes in Michigan in their call to action to protect the Great Lakes against any extractive and destructive projects that would exacerbate the ongoing climate crisis and disregard the well-being of Michigan’s Indigenous citizens.

09/09/2026

Apply for the 2027 Summer Legal Internship with Indian Law Resource Center!

The Center welcomes applicants for the Terrance A. Sidley and John D.B. Lewis paid legal fellowships for summer 2027. The Center’s summer fellowship program requires a minimum eight-week, full-time commitment and is open to students completing either their first or second year of law school. The fellowship entails legal research and writing on major Indian rights issues related to current projects of the Center. Applicants who wish to pursue relevant, existing research projects alongside their work assignments will be considered.

Applications will be considered on a rolling-basis.

Link to apply - https://indianlaw.org/about/internships

09/05/2026

Last November, the United Nations General Assembly decided, in its resolution A/RES/80/10, that the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Women and Girls be observed on September 5th every year. Today we honor Indigenous women and girls.

Indigenous women are leaders, knowledge keepers, protectors of culture, defenders of land and water, and advocates for the rights of their communities.

Their leadership has carried nations forward across generations and their voices are essential to creating a future rooted in dignity, justice, self-determination, and respect for Indigenous human rights.

On the first International Day of the World’s Indigenous Women and Girls, Indian Law Resource Center celebrates their strength, resilience, leadership, and experiences, while recognizing the work that remains to ensure their rights are respected and voices are heard.

Indigenous women’s rights are Indigenous Peoples’ Rights.

Today and every day, we stand with Indigenous women and girls around the world.