Established by the United Nations Human Rights Council in 2007, the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (EMRIP) is a subsidiary body composed of seven independent members. This body provides the Human Rights Council with expertise and advice on the rights of Indigenous Peoples as set out in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (the Declaration). In September 2016, the Human Rights Council amended the mandate of the EMRIP, to include inter alia the preparation of an annual study on the status of the rights of indigenous peoples worldwide in the achievement of the ends of the Declaration through the promotion, protection, and fulfilment of the rights of indigenous peoples. The studies and advice of the Expert Mechanism provide a better understanding of the provisions of the Declaration and propose concrete actions that States, Indigenous Peoples, civil society, national human rights institutions, international organizations, businesses and others can take in order to further its implementation. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) provides technical and substantive support to the Expert Mechanism.

This seminar discusses the roles that EMRIP, as one of the UN mechanisms relating to Indigenous Peoples, plays in the promotion of Indigenous Peoples rights and the importance of the academic institutions in advancing Indigenous Peoples human rights.