A special cultural event organized by the Department of Public Information, emceed by Buffy Sainte-Marie and featuring all indigenous musicians and dancers including: the Silver Cloud Singers, the Thunderbird American Indian Dancers and Spiderwoman Theatre, all from the United States; Marie Boine, a Norwegian Saami singer; Earth Savers, a Filipino tribal dance company; Egon Sikevat, an Inuit drummer and singer from Greenland; Inca Son, an Andean music group from Peru; and Yothu Yindi, an aboriginal rock band from Australia.

The event was co-sponsored by the United Nations Centre for Human Rights, the United Nations Environment Programme, the International Labour Organisation, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, the United Nations Children’s Fund, the United Nations Development Programme and the United Nations Development Fund for Women. Other contributors included the Governments of Australia, Canada, Greenland, Norway and the Philippines. Seven hundred indigenous leaders, and representatives of Member States, indigenous communities, non-governmental organizations and media, as well as personalities from the academic and art worlds attended the cultural event and the reception following. The event received worldwide media coverage.