10 Facts about the World’s Indigenous People
Estimated reading time: 2 minutes
Photo Credit from top right: Justin Porter, Bernardo Ramonfaur, Boris Smokrovic
August 9th is the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples. It marks the date of the inaugural session of the Working Group on Indigenous Populations at the United Nations in 1982. The UN has declared this year’s theme as Indigenous Languages and will focus on the current situation of indigenous languages around the world within the framework of the 2019 International Year of Indigenous Languages.
Below are 10 facts about Indigenous People and how you can support the community!
The International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples was created by the UN in 1994.
Its aim is to protect and promote the rights, culture and land of indigenous people.
Indigenous People account for about 6% of the world's population and 90% of its cultural diversity.
According to the UN, there are an estimated 370 million indigenous peoples living in more than 70 countries around the world. There are approximately 5000 different indigenous groups in the world.
The Amazon River basin represents only 7% of the world’s total service area, but it is also home to 400 different indigenous groups.
Indigenous peoples represent over 4000 different languages of the 6700 known languages that exist today. Most of these languages are considered to be endangered.
Indigenous peoples are 5% of the world's population but account for 15% of the world's extreme poor.
Indigenous peoples encompass approximately 22% of the world’s land surface and are estimated to hold 80% of the planet’s biodiversity
According to United Nations, indigenous peoples are facing greater violations of their rights than was the case 10 years ago.
Indigenous people can also be described as aborigines, native people, first people, first nations and autochthonous.
How can you support the Indigenous community?
Donate to Survival international – All funds donated are put towards the survival and protection of indigenous peoples rights. They help to defend their lands and lives and help them determine their own future.
Watch the official UN International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples webcast. It is hosted in the ECOSOC Chamber at the UN headquarters and you can watch it here.
Donate to Cultural Survival. CS advocates for the rights of Indigenous Peoples and supports Indigenous communities in their work for cultural and political survival.
Support IWGIA - International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs - a global human rights organisation dedicated to promoting, protecting and defending indigenous peoples’ rights.
Stay updated on Indigenous issues with sites like Amazon Watch
Watch documentaries like When Two Worlds Collide (available on Netflix), and support their media! You can find a list of movies and shows here.
Spread awareness of social media by using the hashtags #InternationalDayoftheWorldsIndigenousPeoples, #IndigenousPeoples or tag a specific indigenous group such as #cree or #inca.
