The new Convention, which revises ILO Convention No.107 (1957), applies to tribal peoples in independent countries whose social, cultural and economic conditions distinguish them from other sections of the national community, and whose status is regulated wholly or partially by their own customs or traditions or by special laws and regulations, and to those peoples of independent countries who are regarded as indigenous on account of their descent from the populations which inhabited the country, or a geographic region to which the country belongs, at the time of conquest or colonization or the establishment of present state boundaries and who, irrespective of their legal status, retain some or all of their own social, economic, cultural and political institutions. The basic concepts of the Convention are respect and participation. Respect for the culture, spirituality, social and economic organization and their identity, all constituting essential premises regarding the enduring nature of indigenous and tribal peoples. Convention No. 169 also presumes that indigenous and tribal peoples are able to speak for themselves and to take part in the decision-making process as it affects them and that they have a right to take part in this decision-making process, and that their contribution will be a valuable one in the country in which they live. The Convention contains a number of other important provisions. For example, it requires governments to adopt special measures to ensure [the] effective protection of the peoples concerned with regards to recruitment and conditions of employment. Special measures should be taken to ensure equal opportunities and equal treatment in employment for men and women from indigenous and tribal peoples. With regards to indigenous women workers, there is a provision, unique in international law, which protects them from sexual harassment and abuses. A number of provisions deal with vocational training and promotion of rural and community-based industries, as well as with the obligation of governments to recognize subsistence economy and traditional activities such as hunting, fishing, trapping and gathering as important factors in the maintenance of their cultures, their economic self-reliance and their development. Regarding contact and co-operation across borders, the Convention provides that governments should take measures to facilitate contacts and cooperation between these peoples across borders, including the adoption of international agreements or treaties in order to provide special access to them. This provision also means that indigenous and tribal peoples are able to, and would benefit from, communicating with peoples in other countries in order to build international solidarity.

Each State Party to this Convention recognizes that the duty of ensuring the identification, protection, conservation, presentation and transmission to future generations of the cultural and natural situated on its territory belongs primarily to that State. It will do all it can to this end, to the utmost of its own resources and, where appropriate, with any international assistance and co-operation, in particular, financial, artistic, scientific and technical, which it may be able to obtain. To ensure that effective and active measures are taken for the protection, conservation and presentation of the cultural and natural heritage situated on its territory, each State Party to this Convention shall endeavour: to adopt a general policy which aims to give the cultural and natural heritage a function in the life of the community and to integrate the protection of that heritage into comprehensive planning programmes; to set up within its territories, where such services do not exist, one or more services for the protection, conservation and presentation of the cultural and natural heritage with an appropriate staff and possessing the means to discharge their functions; to develop scientific and technical studies and research and to work out such operating methods as will make the State capable of counteracting the dangers that threaten its cultural or natural heritage; to take the appropriate legal, scientific, technical, administrative and financial measures necessary for the identification, protection, conservation, presentation and rehabilitation of this heritage; and to foster the establishment or development of national or regional centres for training.

Cultural heritage is not limited to material manifestations, such as monuments and objects that have been preserved over time. This notion also encompasses living expressions and the traditions that countless groups and communities worldwide have inherited from their ancestors and transmit to their descendants, in most cases orally. Many years of research on the functions and values of cultural expressions and practices have opened the door to new approaches to the understanding, protection and respect of the cultural heritage of humanity. This living heritage, known as intangible, provides each bearer of such expressions a sense of identity and continuity, insofar as he or she takes ownership of them and constantly recreates them. As a driving force of cultural diversity, living heritage is very fragile. In recent years, it has received international recognition and its safeguarding has become one of the priorities of international bodies leading to the adoption of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. The 2003 Convention defines ICH as the practices, representations, expressions, as well as the knowledge and skills, that communities, groups and, in some cases, individuals recognise as part of their cultural heritage. It also indicates that the ICH to be safeguarded by this Convention: is transmitted from generation to generation; is constantly recreated by communities and groups, in response to their environment, their interaction with nature, and their history; provides communities and groups with a sense of identity and continuity; promotes respect for cultural diversity and human creativity; is compatible with international human rights instruments; complies with the requirements of mutual respect among communities, and of sustainable development. The ICH is traditional and living at the same time. It is constantly recreated and mainly transmitted orally. The depository of this heritage is the human mind, the human body being the main instrument for its enactment, or – literally – embodiment. The knowledge and skills are often shared within a community, and manifestations of ICH often are performed collectively. Many elements of the ICH are endangered, due to effects of globalization, uniformisation policies, and lack of means, appreciation and understanding which – taken together – may lead to the erosion of functions and values of such elements and to lack of interest among the younger generations. The Convention speaks about communities and groups of tradition bearers, without specifying them. Time and again it was stressed that such communities have an open character that they can be dominant or non-dominant, that they are not necessarily linked to specific territories and that one person can very well belong to different communities and switch communities.

The UNECE Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters was adopted on 25th June 1998 in the Danish city of Aarhus at the Fourth Ministerial Conference in the "Environment for Europe" process. It applies to 40 countries in Europe. The Convention is a new kind of environmental agreement. It links environmental rights and human rights. It acknowledges that we owe an obligation to future generations. It establishes that sustainable development can be achieved only through the involvement of all stakeholders. It links government accountability and environmental protection. It focuses on interactions between the public and public authorities in a democratic context and it is forging a new process for public participation in the negotiation and implementation of international agreements. The subject of the Convention goes to the heart of the relationship between people and governments. The Convention is not only an environmental agreement; it is also about government accountability, transparency and responsiveness. The Convention grants the public rights and imposes on public authorities obligations regarding access to information and public participation and access to justice.

The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) has 3 main objectives: (a) To conserve biological diversity; (b) The use biological diversity in a sustainable fashion; (C) To share the benefits of biological diversity fairly and equitably. The treaty defines biodiversity as "the variability among living organisms from all sources including, inter alia, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are part; this includes diversity within species, between species and of ecosystems." Parties to the Biodiversity Treaty "affirm sovereign rights over the biological resources found within their countries, while accepting responsibility for conserving biological diversity and using biological resources in a sustainable manner." One of the most controversial issues addressed by the Biodiversity Treaty is intellectual property right related to biological and genetic resources. This issue is closely linked to equity issues. Although much of the Earth's biodiversity is found in developing countries, these countries have not necessarily benefited equally with developed countries from industrial, medical, agricultural, and other uses of biological and genetic resources. A related topic is the role indigenous people play in maintaining biodiversity. Another major issue addressed by the treaty is the level of financial commitment required of developed countries in support of developing countries.

Adopted by the General Conference of UNESCO at its twenty-fifth session in Paris, on 10 November 1989, the Convention provides that the Contracting States agree to provide and develop technical and vocational education programmes and that technical and vocational education should be designed to operate within a framework of open-ended and flexible structures in the context of lifelong education. The Contracting States agree to review periodically the structure of technical and vocational education, study programmes, plans, training methods and materials, as well as forms of co-operation between the school system and the world of work, so as to ensure that they are constantly adapted to scientific and technological progress, to cultural progress and to changing employment needs in the various sectors of the economy, and that advances in educational research and innovation are taken into account with a view to application of the most effective teaching methods.

The Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (also known as CMS or Bonn Convention) aims to conserve terrestrial, marine and avian migratory species throughout their range. It is an intergovernmental treaty, concluded under the aegis of the United Nations Environment Programme, concerned with the conservation of wildlife and habitats on a global scale. Migratory species threatened with extinction are listed on Appendix I of the Convention. CMS Parties strive towards strictly protecting these animals, conserving or restoring the places where they live, mitigating obstacles to migration and controlling other factors that might endanger them. Besides establishing obligations for each State joining the Convention, CMS promotes concerted action among the Range States of many of these species.