A/HRC//18/42 II. Defining good practices 9. First of all, it is difficult to define what actually constitutes a “good” practice involving indigenous peoples’ participation in decision-making and, second, to assess whether a practice meets the definition of “good”, not least because of the distance separating the Expert Mechanism from the context in which such practices are followed. Third, it has been difficult to acquire comprehensive information from all regions. 10. Mechanisms enabling the participation of indigenous peoples in external, non- indigenous decision-making processes can be problematic for various reasons; they may operate in environments where indigenous peoples are politically, socially and economically non-dominant and, while they enhance indigenous peoples’ participation, they do not go so far as to level the playing field with non-indigenous individuals and peoples; they do not allow greater indigenous influence over decisions in practice; because they are poorly implemented, or suffer from previously unforeseeable problems; or because they privilege the participation of certain indigenous individuals over that of others, creating concerns about their ability to achieve equality between individuals. 11. For the above reasons, the Expert Mechanism cannot verify that all practices mentioned in the present report are uncontroversial or objectively good in every respect. Indeed, the Expert Mechanism can only indicate that elements of certain practices appear to have positive aspects based on its research and on the submissions received. 12. To assess whether a practice is good, the Expert Mechanism has based its criteria on the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. 13. While not an exhaustive list, the Expert Mechanism regards the factors outlined below as relevant when determining whether a practice is good. The most significant indicator of good practice is likely to be the extent to which indigenous peoples were involved in the design of the practice and their agreement to it. Other indicators include the extent to which the practice: (a) Allows and enhances indigenous peoples’ participation in decision-making; (b) Allows indigenous peoples to influence the outcome of decisions that affect them; (c) Realizes indigenous peoples’ right to self-determination; (d) Includes, as appropriate, robust consultation procedures and/or processes to seek indigenous peoples’ free, prior and informed consent. 4