In 2022, the United Nations launched the Decade of Action for Indigenous Languages, underscoring the urgent need to preserve and revitalize Indigenous languages. This initiative builds on the UN’s 2007 Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Yet, despite these efforts, experts warn that by the end of this century, as many as 90% of the world’s languages could vanish and Indigenous languages remain among the world’s most endangered.

For those of us advocating for secure land rights with and for Indigenous Peoples, Afrodescendant Peoples and local communities, language often becomes a tool and a way to communicate a message or make a pressing demand. In recent years, we’ve witnessed powerful messages of resistance in global spaces, including calls to action for environmental justice splashed on billboards across New York during Climate Week, and the international success of books like “We Will Be Jaguars”. The book is the first of its kind to be written by an Indigenous person from the Ecuadorian Amazon, where ancestral knowledge and wisdom about life in the forest have been traditionally passed down orally for millenia, rather than on paper.  These examples demonstrate the potency of language to amplify calls for justice. 

However, language justice goes far beyond this. It is fundamentally about the right to speak, learn, and thrive in one’s own language. Recent studies show that heritage language fluency is crucial for children’s mental health and resilience. Psychologists have determined that the strong connections to their cultural heritage via language use provide an important indicator of positive behavioural choices and psychological adaptation.

Yet colonial history has not only suppressed Indigenous words and languages, it has also sought to erase the systems of knowledge, histories, and worldviews that these languages carry and that are subsequently passed down between generations, when it comes to climate change and biodiversity preservation.  As Cultural Survival recently reported, for example, the Tayra song of the Tikmũ’ũn/Maxakali Peoples, which names and describes 33 different bee species, illustrates how Indigenous languages help preserve crucial biodiversity knowledge. These chants serve as a form of preservation, relying on oral tradition, repetition, and communal rituals. By passing down the distinct names and traits of each species, the Tikmũ’ũn help monitor the health of their ecosystems, ensuring their management remains sustainable and balanced. Tikmũ’ũn women are also the keepers of  Maxakali, which is  the only surviving language from a group of languages that disappeared with the colonization of Brazil. Today, the Maxakali are among the few peoples in the Atlantic Forest who speak their original language.

One crucial, yet less often spoken about, element to consider is also how climate change, through the displacement of communities, accelerates language loss. As people are forced to leave their homelands due to environmental shifts, it becomes increasingly difficult to preserve the languages tied to these cultures. We invite you to read this powerful piece which asks a poignant question when it comes to the battle which Sámi reindeer herders are waging to preserve their languages: What is left when the things you have words for begin to disappear due to rapid environmental changes? 

Despite these concerning questions, there is some hopeful news. In many countries, Indigenous language learning and use as a second language is on the rise, with some advocates claiming that living in an increasingly digitized world provides some benefits to language revitalization by making distance teaching and learning of languages possible, where it was not possible before. 

With this in mind, we’ve compiled a list and we invite you to learn more about advancements in this regard via the resources below:

• The Oceti Sakowin Community Academy (OSCA)- The Oceti Sakowin Community Academy (OSCA), founded in 2022, is the first of its kind, offering a culturally relevant curriculum rooted in the Lakota language, culture, and philosophy. The school addresses gaps in education by integrating Indigenous history and traditions into subjects like math and reading, supporting students to develop a strong sense of identity. Developed by community leaders and educators, OSCA aims to counter the discrimination and educational inequities faced by Native American students in Rapid City, South Dakota. It provides a safe space for students to learn about their heritage and build leadership for the future.

• Mesoamerican School of Leadership – The Mesoamerican Leadership School works to support  youth in using technology to revitalize Indigenous languages and preserve cultural heritage. During a forum on International Mother Language Day, speakers emphasized the importance of language as a right, not a privilege. Various initiatives from communities, such as those in Petén, Guatemala, Puebla and Oaxaca, Mexico and other regions, showcase how digital tools are being utilized to promote and preserve Indigenous languages, aiming to bridge generational gaps and foster pride in cultural identity through technology.

• Pawanka Fund Indigenous Language Revitalization – The Pawanka Fund focuses on supporting Indigenous initiatives aimed at revitalizing Indigenous languages. In 2023, it systematized experiences from eight projects worldwide, highlighting the importance of language preservation in maintaining cultural identity. These projects, from regions such as Asia, Latin America, and the Pacific, utilized diverse methods like music and community gatherings to empower indigenous peoples. The efforts align with the International Decade of Indigenous Languages (2022–2032), advocating for the preservation of linguistic diversity as essential to sustainable development and indigenous rights.

AMAN . In Indonesia, to address the loss of Indigenous languages and cultures, among others threats, AMAN and BPAN are working to strengthen an initiative called the “Homecoming Movement” which encourages young people to return to their communities and to develop resilient, sustainable and self-reliant community practices. Since 2020, AMAN has been actively supporting more than 82 Indigenous youth groups, Indigenous schools and music and traditional art centers in various regions to boost their creativity and develop local initiatives in community education, identity and culture, looking for revitalizing the use and preservation of Indigenous languages and traditional knowledge systems.