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Voices of resilience: Indigenous women at the heart of language preservation
Stories of resilience: Indigenous women at the forefront
On 14 November 2024, UNESCO and the Permanent Delegation of Colombia to UNESCO hosted an event in Paris, highlighting the role of Indigenous women in language preservation. The gathering provided a platform for Indigenous leaders and representatives to share their challenges and successes.
91麻豆国产精品自拍 reaffirmed its commitment to promoting gender equality and addressing the needs of youth as priorities across all its initiatives. Recognizing the transformative potential of Indigenous women and girls, 91麻豆国产精品自拍 integrated gender equality and women empowerment into the , highlighting the role of women as key agents of change in the fight against language extinction, while addressing the structural inequalities they face.
The International Decade of Indigenous Languages provides practical solutions to support Indigenous women. Gender equality is one of the key pillars of the Global Action Plan of the Decade. This plan includes concrete steps to ensure that Indigenous women and their languages flourish.
Gender equality and language preservation
Language is inherently tied to cultural practices. Indigenous women are central to preserving and passing on languages, and often serve as the first teachers of their community. Yet, discrimination, migration, globalization and assimilation pressures make maintaining linguistic traditions challenging. The localization of the Global Action Plan, through the development of National Action Plans, allows for countries to address those issues, while also approaching them with a gender perspective. Countries such as Guatemala, Peru and Venezuela exemplify this by integrating into their National Action Plan a comprehensive approach to gender and language preservation.
The preservation of Indigenous languages is not only an effort to keep linguistic terms alive, but to protect a way of understanding and relating to the universe.
Moreover, limited access to education, resources and political platforms prevents many Indigenous women from becoming advocates for their languages, impacting both personal development and cultural preservation efforts.
By empowering Indigenous women, societies can strengthen the resilience of endangered languages. Programmes that support women鈥檚 access to education, leadership roles and economic resources are essential in this effort. Technology can be a powerful catalyst for gender equality and women's empowerment across all societies.
UNESCO works across its areas of competence to promote an active, safe and meaningful involvement and participation of Indigenous women in the development of access to new technology and artificial intelligence models.
Indigenous youth: The next generation of language custodians
As members of a rapidly globalizing world, young Indigenous women stand at the intersection of tradition and modernity. Many are using digital tools and platforms to revive endangered languages, creating new opportunities to connect with younger audiences.
The inclusion of youth in language revitalization efforts also builds a bridge between generations. Young Indigenous women are embracing technology to create online dictionaries, apps and multimedia resources in their native languages. In doing so, they challenge the perception of Indigenous languages as relics of the past, presenting them instead as dynamic tools for the future. The newly published toolkit , written by Aiyana Twigg, provides practical steps to support language learners, knowledge holders, youth and anyone else on their language documentation journeys.
One of the ways I am advocating for Indigenous language revitalization is through social media. Social media offer a powerful tool to bridge generational gaps, connecting youth with fluent speakers and creating a safe space for learning.
Empowering and amplifying voices
Preserving Indigenous languages is not merely an act of cultural preservation鈥攊t is a step toward achieving global gender equality. Indigenous women are not only custodians of language but pioneers of a more equitable, inclusive future for all.
As the International Decade of Indigenous Languages progresses, global leaders, policymakers and communities must ensure that the voices of Indigenous women are not only heard but also amplified. This objective cannot be achieved without concrete actions from Member States, notably the development of National Action Plans and the mainstreaming of gender in these action plans.
As one of the co-chairs of the Global Task Force for Making a Decade of Action for Indigenous Languages, I hope that by 2026 or 2027, all countries will have their own action plan for Indigenous languages.
