The Asia Pacific Indigenous Youth Network (APIYN) participated in the First World Indigenous Network (WIN) Conference on May 26-29, 2013 at the Darwin, Northern Territory Australia. About 1200 indigenous peoples from 55 countries come together to share and discuss practices and challenges of the the land and sea management of the indigenous territories.
Keidy Transfiguracion from the Philippines, APIYN participatory video facilitator, presented a paper titled “Participatory Video process: a tool of empowering the indigenous peoples” in one of the workshops of the WIN Conference. She discussed the importance of empowering the indigenous peoples through video. She further added that through the participatory video, indigenous peoples come together to discuss certain issue that the community is facing and most importantly to identify grassroot solutions to it.
One of the Keynote Speakers of the conference was Prof. James Anaya, the United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigneous peoples. In his speech, he discussed the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP)’s salient point on land and sea management. He described that, “from recognition to implementation of the rights of indigenous peoples: worlds of contrast”.
He then suggested that in order to bridge the implementation gap of the declaration, peoples should:
1) open or strengthen platforms of dialogue among indigenous leaders and government actors;
2) promote broad awareness within society about indigenous peoples and their rights;
3) promote use of the UN DRIP in governemnt policy and decision making; and
4) exercise powers of imagination.
During the Youth WIN discussions, various concerns and issues was discussed among the youth. 
These includes land and sea management and the conservation of the bio-cultural diversity. Concluded is the agreement that a network is established and a reference group is formed to coordinate all youth issues at the conference. Future programs on capacity building, education and connection to nature-culture was identified.
APIYN, through Transfiguracion, is part of the core group of the Young Land and Sea Managers Network. Among the others are youth leaders from Australia, Tazmania, Sami/Norway and Nepal.
