International Advocacy

NCAI’s International Advocacy portfolio elevates the issues facing AI/AN peoples beyond the U.S. domestic sphere and into the context of global colonialism, calling back to the original recognition of Indigenous Peoples as sovereign entities with relations grounded in international law and customs. The United States has always recognized Tribal Nations as inherently separate sovereigns, and international platforms offer an opportunity for collaboration and networking with other Indigenous sovereign groups to seek equality, recognition, and remediation. International organizations and coalitions offer an opportunity to heighten the standard by which the United States engages with the Tribal Nations within its borders and give Tribal leaders self-representation on the global stage.

In conjunction with domestic and international organizations, NCAI supports Tribal leaders’ participation at multiple offices within the U.N. and the Organization of American States. NCAI continues to press for Indigenous inclusion at the highest levels of U.S. diplomatic engagements, and recently renewed its commitment to collaborating with the Assembly of First Nations in Canada, in solidarity with Indigenous Americans across modern borders.

Focus Areas and Goals

To continue elevating Tribal Nations on an international platform, the NCAI Policy Team focuses its efforts on the following areas:

  1. Full Indigenous Participation on the International Stage

    1. Advocating at every opportunity for the direct participation of Indigenous Peoples at international bodies, including the U.N. and the Organization of American States, without the intervention of member states

    2. Facilitating opportunities for Tribal leaders to attend and participate in projects with an international scope, including observations, negotiations, and interventions

  2. International Agency Participation

    1. Coordinating Tribal participation on international platforms, including:

      1. United Nations Human Rights Council

        1. Elevating the participation of Tribal leaders at the annual United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) in New York

        2. Procuring expertise for the EMRIP, a subsidiary body that provides guidance to the U.N. Human Rights Council on implementing the U.N. Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP)

      2. The WIPO, a U.N. agency that promotes and protects intellectual property, including the inherent intellectual property of Indigenous Peoples

        1. Participating in domestic and international coalitions to draft proposed language for international treaties protecting TK and Traditional Cultural Expressions (TCE) from unauthorized and inappropriate uses

      3. The U.N. Climate Change Conference which hosts meetings of the parties to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change

        1. Participating in LCIPP

        2. Elevating Tribal representation at Conference of the Parties gatherings to convey Indigenous positions on biodiversity protection and climate change

  3. Cross-Border Collaboration

    1. Continue relationships with Indigenous organizations outside of the United States, and develop the renewed declaration of friendship with the Assembly of First Nations in Canada into robust social, political, and economic relationships

    2. Participate in domestic and international coalitions on areas of Indigenous interest, including treaty language workshops and strategic coordination

    3. Host a Tribal Border Task Force to identify issues and advocate on a range of border issues, including border crossings, border security, and multilateral international consultations among the United States, Canada, and Tribal Nations within both countries on transboundary mining and infrastructure projects

  4. Domestic Advocacy

    1. Continuing to call on the U.S. Congress to adopt and implement both UNDRIP and WIPO Treaty on Intellectual Property, Genetic Resources and Associated Traditional Knowledge (GRATK) as binding law within the United States

    2. Maintaining communications with the Department of State and other relevant agencies to promote Tribal involvement in international treaty negotiations and transboundary matters

Associated Organizations

Assembly of First Nations

Council of Southern Chiefs

Indigenous Alliance without Borders

Indian Law Resource Center

Jay Treaty Border Alliance

NARF

National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development

Associated Committees and Subcommittees:

International Committee

Associated Task Forces:

Tribal Border Task Force

Two-Spirit Task Force

VAW Task Force

Associated Instruments

  • UNDRIP (2007): a U.N. declaration establishing the minimum standards for the treatment of Indigenous Peoples. The United States expressed support in 2010, but has not yet formally adopted UNDRIP as domestic law.

  • GRATK (2024): an international agreement under which contracting parties require patent applications to disclose the genetic resources and any associated TK, with Indigenous Peoples having an opportunity to challenge patent protection, thereby reducing “biopiracy” and commercialization of Indigenous knowledge. The United States has not yet formally adopted GRATK as domestic law.

  • The Kickapoo Act (1983): This Act of Congress recognized the Texas Band of Kickapoo Indians and allowed free border passage for its enrolled Tribal members, regardless of their citizenship or birthplace.

  • The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848): This treaty ended the U.S.Mexico War, but arbitrarily divided Indigenous lands without consultation, leading to hostilities in the Southwest that demonstrate the importance of recognizing full Indigenous participation in international decision-making even today.

  • The Jay Treaty (1794): Negotiated between Great Britain and the fledgling United States, this treaty still applies to permit the free passage of First Nations Canadians into the United States to work, trade, and study under specific immigration laws. The government of Canada does not consider the Jay Treaty to be binding and does not recognize reciprocal rights of Tribal members from the United States.

  • The Boundary Waters Treaty (1909): Entered into between the United States and Great Britain, this treaty regulates the shared use of transboundary waters between the United States and Canada. Its implementing body, the International Joint Commission, conducts outreach and engagement with Tribal Nations and First Nations within the boundary waters areas.

Past Year Achievements

  • NCAI promoted the direct participation of Indigenous leadership at the 25th UNPFII, by supporting the presentation of their interventions to the Forum on enhanced participation and the importance of the GRATK

  • Finalized a Memorandum of Understanding with the Assembly of First Nations, establishing a cooperative and mutually beneficial relationship, paving the way to develop political, social, and economic partnerships among Indigenous Peoples within the United States and Canada

  • President Macarro attended the University of Colorado GRATK workshop to support efforts toward implementation and the ongoing negotiations on treaty language protecting TK and TCE, building on NCAI’s work with NARF to advocate for the inclusion of Indigenous protections in discussion withthe United States’ negotiations team

  • NCAI was represented by NARF at the WIPO Intergovernmental Committee meeting regarding ongoing negotiations on treaty language

Next Year Goals

  • Collaborate with related organizations to produce interventions, statements, and papers for presentation at major international conferences, including the WIPO IGC, the UNPFII, the Organization of American States, and the Conference of Parties meetings.

  • Lead delegations of NCAI Tribal leaders to the UNPFII in New York to deliver interventions, panel presentations, and participate in collaborative activities.

Footer Zig