A/HRC/30/52 55. Representatives of States recognized the importance of revitalizing and preserving the cultural heritage of indigenous peoples and discussed many ongoing measures in their respective countries. They highlighted specific legislative measures, support for education in native/mother tongues, the establishment of institutions for promoting indigenous cultures, budget allocations for the preservation of indigenous art and culture, along with research and studies on the contribution of indigenous cultural heritage to mainstream society. Similarly, national human rights institutions shared some exemplary action they had taken to protect and promote indigenous peoples’ right to cultural heritage. 56. Mr. Barume remarked that Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) had huge potential to strengthen the protection of indigenous peoples’ rights. However, in order for that to be put into practice, UNESCO and its World Heritage Committee must align their policies and programmes with the international human rights standards relating to indigenous peoples, including regional and national instruments. He regretted the fact that the World Heritage Committee had declared World Heritage Sites in many parts of the world in a manner that did not respect international standards that safeguarded indigenous peoples’ rights, particularly the principle of free, prior and informed consent. To address that gap, he called upon UNESCO, the World Heritage Committee and other relevant organizations to strengthen their knowledge on indigenous peoples’ rights through training and awareness-raising activities. He also called upon Member States to evaluate and recognize the contribution that indigenous peoples’ cultural heritage made to national economies. IX. United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples 57. International Chief Littlechild provided an overview of the Expert Mechanism’s work in the area of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, including a review of the final summary of the responses to the questionnaire seeking the views of States and indigenous peoples on best practices regarding possible appropriate measures and implementation strategies to attain the goals of the Declaration. He thanked the staff of the Faculty of Law at the University of Manitoba for their assistance in preparing the summary of the responses, and all the States and indigenous peoples who had responded. He referred to the World Conference on Indigenous Peoples as a significant step forward for the recognition of the rights of indigenous peoples. He reminded States that the outcome document of the World Conference was a reaffirmation of their support for the Declaration and the commitments made therein. 58. Claire Charters, a member of the Board of Trustees of the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Indigenous Peoples, delivered a statement on behalf of the Board. She welcomed the thirty-two beneficiaries of the Fund present at the session and thanked the Member States that had contributed to the Fund. She highlighted the fact that 2015 marked the thirtieth anniversary of the Fund and that over the course of the 30 years, the Fund had supported the participation of 2,000 representatives at United Nations meetings. She pointed out the achievements of the beneficiaries of the Voluntary Fund and provided an overview of the Board of Trustees’ activities in 2014-2015. She concluded by encouraging all Governments to consider supporting the work of the Fund. 59. Many participants noted that, while there had been significant progress, indigenous peoples remained among the most marginalized groups in many parts of the world. The systematic violation of the rights enshrined in the Declaration was ongoing and pervasive. A variety of obstacles and barriers to the implementation of the Declaration were identified by participants. They included the lack of political will and financial resources to 14