37 Years of WIPCE
A Global Indigenous Education Movement
The World Indigenous Peoples’ Conference on Education (WIPCE) commenced in 1987 in Vancouver, Canada. The pivotal role of community, represented by elders and community knowledge keepers, was captured in the inaugural WIPCE conference, providing both a primacy of purpose and of place. WIPCE is now a movement of individuals and organisations dedicated to the design and development of culturally affirming and intellectually enriching education for Indigenous peoples.
An estimated 370 million Indigenous peoples live in all continents of the earth and represent a significant part of the world’s vast cultural and linguistic diversity and heritage. Indigenous peoples possess unique knowledge systems, which are recognised as crucial for sustainable development. At the same time, social, economic and political marginalisation of Indigenous peoples is pervasive in all the regions across the world.
Indigenous peoples face fundamental challenges when attempting to reconcile their own forms of culturally transmitted learning with systems of formal education. Over the past 37 years, WIPCE has endeavoured to address this issue and has grown to become a major international event in the Indigenous education movement. The WIPCE conference draws Indigenous representatives from across the globe to share successes and strategies for culturally grounded education. WIPCE attracts Indigenous education experts, practitioners, scholars, students and communities.
As ngā kaiārahi (hosts) of WIPCE 2025 we are committed to the values as ratified through the Coolangatta Statement on Indigenous Peoples’ Rights in Education and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
Te Wānanga Aronui o Tāmaki Makau Rau, also known as the Auckland University of Technology (AUT), is one of the world’s best modern universities. We embrace new technologies to lead the learning of tomorrow, and prepare our students for the rapidly changing world. AUT has more than 60 research centres and institutes delivering leading research – from artificial intelligence to robotics, and ecology to public health. As a contemporary university, AUT is connected to an extraordinary range of organisations worldwide; sharing expertise and resources, collaborating on ground-breaking research, and connecting students with industry leaders and employers.
The university has a strong and important relationship with Māori, which honours the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi, New Zealand's founding document. This commitment is reflected in our educational, social and philosophical culture. Our Office of Māori Advancement works closely with Māori staff, students and the wider community in advising and implementing Māori knowledge and initiatives throughout the university.