About the Conference
IFIP’s World Summit on Indigenous Philanthropy, took place between September 23 – 26, 2014 in NYC right after the United Nations World Conference on Indigenous Peoples (WCIP). This was be the biggest event in IFIP history and it had a remarkable impact on Indigenous philanthropy. The Summit was uniquely positioned to bring together thought leaders, philanthropists, donor agencies, and Indigenous visionaries in a powerful and informative event, resulting in concrete actions that will take Indigenous philanthropy to the next level.
The high-level plenary meeting of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly known as the WCIP took place on September 22-23, 2014, at the UN headquarters in New York. Indigenous and non-Indigenous world leaders shared perspectives and best practices on the realization of the rights of Indigenous peoples, including to pursue the objectives of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
The World Summit on Indigenous Philanthropy will be IFIP’s flagship conference of the decade. Tracey Castro Whare from the Secretariat of the Indigenous Global Coordinating Group (GCG) organizing the UN WCIP, was on IFIP’s Summit Planning Committee ensuring that the message and the vision of WCIP is in line with IFIP’s Summit. We at IFIP continuously aim to establish the best, most efficient ways to practice Indigenous philanthropy, whereby Indigenous Peoples are our equal partners and not passive receivers. Through the Summit, IFIP created a forum where more than 300 donors, NGOs and Indigenous leaders came together to cultivate funding partnerships, leading to the improvement of the lives of Indigenous people globally.
Keynote Speaker: Roberta Jamieson
Roberta L. Jamieson is a Mohawk woman from the Six Nations of the Grand River Territory in Ontario, where she still resides. In November of 2004, she was appointed CEO and President of the National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation. In February 2012, the Foundation changed its name to Indspire and incorporated its new tag line, “Indigenous Education, Canada’s future.” Under Roberta’s leadership, Indspire is flourishing. Bursary and scholarship funding has dramatically increased to over $54 million to 16,000 students, more than doubling since Roberta’s 2004 appointment. She has extended Indspire’s career conferences to all regions of Canada. Roberta also lead the development of the Indspire Institute, an online laboratory of learning focused on increasing high school completion rates and K-12 success.
Roberta has enjoyed a distinguished career of “firsts.” She was the first First Nations woman to earn a law degree; the first non-parliamentarian appointed an ex-officio member of a House of Commons Committee; the first woman Ombudsman of Ontario; and in December 2001, she was the first woman elected Chief of the Six Nations of the Grand River Territory. Roberta was also Commissioner of the Indian Commission of Ontario and for ten years, Ombudsman of Ontario.
She has earned numerous awards, including the National Aboriginal Achievement Award (Law and Justice 1998), the Indigenous Bar Association’s highest award, Indigenous Peoples Council Award (IPC) and 23 honorary degrees. She has been named three times to the Women’s Executive Network’s Top 100 list. She is a Member of the Order of Canada.
Keynote Speaker: Victoria Tauli-Corpuz
Victoria Tauli-Corpuz is an indigenous leader from the Kankanaey Igorot people of the Cordillera Region in the Philippines and is the current UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. She is a social development consultant, indigenous activist, civic leader, human rights expert, public servant, and an advocate of women’s rights in the Philippines. She was the former Chair of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (2005-2010). As an indigenous leader she got actively engaged in drafting and adoption of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in 2007. She helped build the indigenous peoples’ movement in the Cordillera as a youth activist in the early 1970s. She helped organize indigenous peoples in the community level to fight against the projects of the Marcos Dictatorship such as the Chico River Hydroelectric Dam and the Cellophil Resources Corporation. These communities succeeded in stopping these.
She is the founder and executive director of Tebtebba Foundation (Indigenous Peoples’ International Center for Policy Research and Education). Ms. Tauli-Corpuz has founded and managed various NGOs involved in social awareness raising, climate change, the advancement of indigenous peoples’ and women’s rights. A member of the Kankana-ey Igorat peoples, she was the chairperson of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. She is an Expert for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and has served as the chairperson-rapporteur of the Voluntary Fund for Indigenous Populations. She is also the indigenous and gender adviser of the Third World Network and a member of United Nations Development Programme Civil Society Organizations Advisory Committee.