A/64/338 26. However, taking into consideration the establishment of the expert mechanism on the rights of indigenous peoples, with a mandate to provide thematic expertise and recommendations to the Human Rights Council on issues affecting indigenous peoples, the Special Rapporteur now sees his own work in carrying out thematic studies as secondary to the other areas of his work. His role, for the most part, will be complementary and supportive of the work of the expert mechanism. In this regard, early in 2009 he provided information, based on his experiences as Special Rapporteur, for the expert mechanism’s current study on the right of indigenous peoples to education. 27. In addition, in the interest of further understanding the specific challenges facing indigenous women, the Special Rapporteur participated in a regional consultation on violence against indigenous women in the Asia Pacific region with the former Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, Yakin Ertürk. The regional consultation, which was organized in New Delhi by the Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development and the Mahila Sarvangeen Utkarsha Mandal development group, was followed by a national consultation from 14 to 18 October 2008. Participants in the consultations, many of them indigenous women from the region, identified key recurring issues contributing to violence, including discriminatory acts against indigenous women in the following areas: economic globalization; militarization and armed conflict; and culture, tradition and religion and their intersectional impacts on the lives of indigenous women. The discussions with the two Special Rapporteurs were focused on identifying effective strategies and mechanisms for addressing multiple forms of violence against indigenous women at the national, regional and international levels and on learning from good practices. The consultations culminated in a report entitled “Defending the Rights of Indigenous Women in the Asia Pacific: Towards an Inclusive and Violence-Free Future”. 28. The Special Rapporteur is also collaborating with non-governmental organizations and indigenous experts on two initiatives related to two thematic areas of recurrent concern to indigenous peoples. One is a seminar, organized by the non-governmental organization Khredda and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Centre of Catalonia, which is to take place in October 2009, on dispute resolution mechanisms with regard to extractive industries operating or seeking to operate within indigenous territories. The seminar and its outcome report correspond to a recommendation made last year by the Permanent Forum that the Special Rapporteur carry out a study on transnational corporations, and the seminar is intended to complement the Permanent Forum’s own work on this subject. The second initiative is a multifaceted study on legal pluralism and indigenous customary law, to be carried out in collaboration with the International Council on Human Rights Policy and OHCHR. This study is likely to begin with a workshop at the University of Arizona, some time next year. C. Country reports 29. A third area of the Special Rapporteur’s work involves investigating and reporting on the overall human rights situations of indigenous peoples in selected countries. The reports of the country situations include conclusions and recommendations aimed at strengthening good practices, identifying areas of 10 09-50281