Speech: Indigenous Youth Delivers a Speech During IUCN Congress 2025

Koku, Chumreap Sour, Good afternoon!

Madam President, Excellencies, distinguished delegates, colleagues, and friends,

 It is a great honor to speak today as one of the young Indigenous Peoples at this IUCN Congress. My name is Blen Romam, president of the Cambodia Indigenous Youth Association (CYA). I come from an Indigenous community in Cambodia where Indigenous knowledge and wisdom have guided people for many generations, teaching us how to live in connection with nature and to respect the land that sustains us.

Through my work with Indigenous youths and community-based initiatives, I have witnessed how traditional practices—from traditional farming to ancient ways of communicating with nature and managing resources—hold solutions that modern science is only beginning to rediscover.

Yet too often, these traditional knowledges of our elders and our communities are left unheard. Today, many young people are more connected to their phones than to nature. That is why I have dedicated my journey to bridging Indigenous knowledge with modern conservation efforts, to ensure that restoration is not only about trees and species, but also about people, culture, and identity.

From this Congress, I move forward with an action plan focused on three priorities:

1. Turning policy into action by strengthening the Cambodia Metrei Youth Initiative through capacity strengthening, supporting innovation, and advocating for community-based conservation.
2. Documenting and sharing Indigenous wisdom through storytelling and artists so that these teachings can inspire global restoration movements.
3. Building partnerships and Engagement between Indigenous communities, governments, and organizations like IUCN — to co-create solutions rooted in both science and tradition at all levels.

We all belong to nature. As we close this Congress, I carry hope—hope that our generation will listen more deeply, reconnect our spiritual with nature, and honor indigenous knowledge that has sustained our life on the Earth for centuries. There’s no time to wait. Let’s move forward together with mutual respect and a holistic approach to protect our nature and people. Lastly, I would like to seek your support for Indigenous Peoples to protect nature and people.

Boni lo, Orkun, Thank you, and Wish You All The Best!