Russian Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North (RAIPON)

RAIPON is represented in the AEC by the following three business representatives:

1. Grigory Ledkov, President of RAIPON. Mr. Ledkov is Nenets, and was born in the city of Naryan-Mar, Nenets Autonomous Okrug (NAO), Russia.He holds two university degrees: one in Cultural Studies from the Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia; the other in Law from St. Petersburg State University. Ledkov has a wide ranging work experience. He started his professional life as a curriculum developer at the Ethno-Cultural Center in the NAO and later led this  institution as Director. Some years later Grigory moved to Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Okrug (YNAO) and worked there in different positions, including as Head of Administration of the village of Gydan, Taz municipality; the Director of the municipal institution “Management of Municipal Property” and the Chair of the Reindeer Herding Production Cooperative “Taz”.In 2011 he was elected to the Parliament of the Russian Federation (RF) and was reelected in 2016, representing the YNAO in the State Duma of the Russian Federation. As a member of Parliament, he has focused on Indigenous Peoples polices, as well as Circumpolar North and Arctic issues. He is a head of a working group on the development of federal laws on indigenous peoples’ rights, in the Committee on Nationalities of the State Duma of the RF. He is also the head of the permanent delegation of the State Duma to the Nordic Council. In March 2013 he was elected as President of the Russian Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North, Siberia and the Far East (RAIPON).  He is married and has four children.
2. Liubov Peshperova, Vice President of RAIPON on the Development of the Entrepreneurship. Ms. Peshperova was born in the village of Shunurak, Tuochak in the district og Altain. She is Kumandin by nationality. In 1975, she graduated from Altai State Pedagogical Institute as a teacher of biology. She has gained work experience in the university, regional administration and business. In 1992, she established her own company that has focus on trade, Food production and tourism. Since 1999, she has also been working in local and regional indiginous organizations and in 2013 was elected as President of “Ringing Cedars”, the regional Association of Indigenous Peoples of the Altai Republic.Her Public service work was also at the federal level and she was elected as a Vice President of RAIPON on the Development og Entrepreneurship and as Vice Chair of the RAIPON Business Council.
3. Sergey Sizonenko, Vice Chair of RAIPON Business Council. Sergey Sizonenko is Dolgan and grew up in the village of Karaul, Ust-Yenisei district of the Krasnoyarsk Krai. He has two university degrees in Law. He has gained work experience in multiple environments including in the administration of the Taymyr Dolgan-Nenets District, the District’s Parliament, the NadymGazprom Company, the reindeer herding enterprise Suzun, and more. His Public Activity both at the federal Levels is very high.Sizonenko is Deputy Chairman of the Taimyr Dolgan-Nenets Autonomous District Council and a Chairman of the Permanent Committee on the North, Subsurface Resources Management, Environment and Indigenous Peoples of Taimyr. He was also elected to be Vice Chair of the RAIPON Business Council. Sergey’s hobbies are chedd and Taekwondo in which he holds a Second Degree black belt. He is married and has a daughter.

RAIPON was founded in 1990 at the first Congress of Indigenous Peoples of the North of USSR. Now RAIPON is the Russian umbrella organization which organizes 35 regional and ethnic organizations of indigenous peoples in the regions where they live.

RAIPON represents 41 groups of indigenous peoples of the North, Siberia and the Far East. The total number of People is more than 270 thousand and they live in 60 % of the Whole Territory of the Russian Federation from Murmansk to Kamchatka.

The purpose of RAIPON is to protect indigenous peoples’ human rights, defend their legal interests, assist in solving environmenta, social, economic, cultural and educational issues, and to promote their right to self governance.

RAIPON works with the State Duma and the Government of the Russian Federation regarding legislation related to indigenous peoples’ issues.

Country: The Russian Federation