TITLE: Request for Federal Government to Develop Guidance on Recognizing Tribal Sovereign Jurisdiction over Traditional Knowledge
WHEREAS, we, the members of the National Congress of American Indians of the United States, invoking the divine blessing of the Creator upon our efforts and purposes, in order to preserve for ourselves and our descendants the inherent sovereign rights of our Indian nations, rights secured under Indian treaties and agreements with the United States, and all other rights and benefits to which we are entitled under the laws and Constitution of the United States, to enlighten the public toward a better understanding of the Indian people, to preserve Indian cultural values, and otherwise promote the health, safety and welfare of the Indian people, do hereby establish and submit the following resolution; and
WHEREAS, the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) was established in 1944 and is the oldest and largest national organization of American Indian and Alaska Native tribal governments; and
WHEREAS, there is increasing acknowledgement that Indian tribes possess traditional knowledge that is equivalent to the value of scientific knowledge in solving environmental problems caused by global environmental change and climate change; and
WHEREAS, traditional tribal knowledge is a core part of our identity and ways of life, is highly spiritual and carries obligations for its appropriate use;
WHEREAS, such knowledge includes, but is not limited to use of medicinal plants and knowledge of traditional habitats; and
WHEREAS, some of our traditional knowledge is so sacred that it cannot be shared outside of our members and tradition holders; and
WHEREAS, in this context, Federal agencies, scientists and others are approaching tribes for access to their traditional knowledge and funding traditional knowledge compilation projects without guidance; and
WHEREAS, the Federal government, in accord with the federal trust responsibility, should recognize the sovereign rights of tribes to control access to and the use of their traditional knowledge and the right to free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) to give or deny access to it; and
WHEREAS, traditional knowledge should also only be accessed through the government-to-government process that respects the sovereign right of each Tribe to determine its appropriate process with its tradition holders for access and FPIC; and
WHEREAS, the emphasis on the utilization of traditional knowledge should focus on support for its application by tribes to solve environmental and climate problems without the need for sharing it; and
WHEREAS, in those cases where traditional knowledge may be shared by the tribes, measures need to be developed to ensure that it is used appropriately, that tribes are protected in policy and law against its misuse and that the tribes are able to determine and receive benefits from its use; and
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Federal government work with tribes to develop appropriate guidance on how to approach tribes for access to traditional knowledge, while also respecting the right of each tribe to develop its own terms of access; and
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Federal government work with its funding agencies to ensure respect for and protection of these rights in all federally-funded projects; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that this resolution shall be the policy of NCAI until it is withdrawn or modified by subsequent resolution.