Notification 2018-017

Dear Madam/Sir, I am pleased to inform you that the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), in collaboration with the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources of Mexico, the Indigenous Network on Tourism of Mexico, the International Indigenous Forum on Biodiversity, the Sotzil Association, the Indigenous Women's Biodiversity Network, UNDP’s Equator Initiative and UNDP’s Global ABS Project, is organizing a regional training workshop for the Latin American and the Caribbean region, which will be held in Tepoztlan, Mexico, from 2 to 6 April 2018. This workshop is possible thanks to the generous financial support from the Government of Japan, through the Japan Biodiversity Fund, and the program Equitable and sustainable promotion of the economic potential of biodiversity to implement the Nagoya Protocol in Central America – Access and Benefit Sharing implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, in cooperation with the Central American Commission for Environment and Development (CCAD). The aim of the workshop is to train the trainers from indigenous peoples and local community organizations and Parties, to develop action plans for traditional knowledge that contain national arrangements to fulfil obligations concerning: - Traditional knowledge in accordance with Article 8(j) of the Convention; - Traditional knowledge associated with genetic resources under the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization and; - Aichi Biodiversity Targets 18 (traditional knowledge) and 16 (Nagoya Protocol) of the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020. As outcomes of the workshop, Parties and indigenous peoples and local communities from developing countries will be able to develop national action plans for traditional knowledge in order to achieve Aichi Biodiversity Target 18 and contribute to Aichi Biodiversity Target 16 by 2020. It will also contribute to a better understanding of the traditional knowledge elements of the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization (articles 5, 6, 7, 12, 18 and 19) and to effectively achieve them in the national context. The training workshop will be conducted in Spanish and is dedicated only to Spanish-speaking countries of the region. I am therefore pleased to invite interested Parties, particularly Parties that have nominated Traditional Knowledge Focal Points, and indigenous peoples and local communities in Latin America and the Caribbean region, to nominate representatives based on the following selection criteria: (i) Expertise on traditional knowledge, customary sustainable use, and related indigenous peoples and local communities’ issues; (ii) Interest to work in the development of a national plan of action on traditional knowledge at the national level, including the identification of national priority actions to achieve Aichi Biodiversity Target 18 and contribute to Aichi Biodiversity Target 16 of the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020; In the weeks leading up to the workshop, the selected participants will be requested to: (i) Prepare a document on the status of traditional knowledge in their countries in relation to the Aichi Biodiversity Targets 16 and 18, including the identified priority actions for their achievement. Participants may present collated information or case studies at the workshop, and; (ii) Take the online course on “National arrangements on traditional knowledge for achieving Aichi Biodiversity Target 18 and contributing to Aichi Biodiversity Target 16 of the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020” available in due course at https://scbd.unssc.org/. Nominations should take the form of an official letter addressed to the Executive Secretary, by e mail at: secretariat@cbd.int, or by fax at: +1 (514) 288-6588, and must contain full contact details of the nominee, along with a curriculum vitae clearly indicating the relevant areas of expertise, as well as the duly completed form available at https://goo.gl/3t32uy. Nominations should be submitted no later than 16 February 2018. The Secretariat, in collaboration with partner organizations, will select participants on the basis of regional balance, gender equity, relevant expertise, and interest to develop a national plan of action on traditional knowledge. Information about the workshop, including the list of selected participants, will be posted on the CBD website at: https://www.cbd.int/tk/cb/training/LAC.shtml. Subject to the availability of funds, the Secretariat will cover travel expenses of selected participants. Selected participants will be contacted directly by the Secretariat. Please accept, Madam/Sir, the assurances of my highest consideration.

To: CBD, ABS NFPs, TK Focal Points, indigenous peoples and local community organizations from the following countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela