On the basis of a collaborative, community-led data-gathering effort and testimonies from indigenous communities, this report provides first-hand information on the situation of indigenous peoples in 11 countries where communities have participated in the Indigenous Navigator initiative. It highlights the differentiated impact that COVID-19 is having on indigenous peoples, which also varies from c...

On 8 October 2018, communities filed a complaint to the EIB’s Complaints Mechanism documenting that project authorities have left communities in the dark about the transmission line, its various impacts and the route of the line.

This report is the result of a process of review and feedback conducted between June and August 2020. The feedback was gathered through consultation, surveys and interviews with Indigenous Navigator Consortium members and coordinators at the national partner organisations who have been involved with implementation of the Indigenous Navigator project. Some partners have been implementing the Indige...

This book forms an essential contribution to the process of legitimising the recognition and exercise of the world’s Indigenous Peoples’ right to self-determination in domestic and international law. It further offers a space for analysis, dialogue and debate aimed at coordinating visions and sharing experiences of the difficult path to building and practising autonomy and self-government.

Indigenous Peoples are at the heart of the struggle for equality, rights, participation and self-determination for a more sustainable and just world. At IWGIA we are proud to stand by and behind Indigenous Peoples. We thank all those who support us to do so. This annual report presents some of the many significant achievements IWGIA supported in 2019 for Indigenous Peoples' rights. 

Over the centuries, Indigenous Peoples have developed ingenious and dynamic ways of managing their constantly evolving territories while avoiding the depletion of natural resources. Some Indigenous lifestyles have faced various challenges and have led to a less sustainable management of their resources.

The compilation is the unique result of a collaborative effort between Indigenous and non-indigenous activists and scholars who voluntarily document and report on the situation of Indigenous Peoples’ rights. We thank them and celebrate the bonds and sense of community that result from the close cooperation needed to make this one-of-a kind documentation tool available.   For 34 consec...

This book is a compilation of the articles on Nepal that have been published in IWGIA's The Indigenous World from 2006 to 2020.  You can also download the Nepali version here.

This case study unravels the example of how a customary institution is embedded in the social and physical uniqueness of a community of indigenous peoples. It demonstrates the value of recognizing and safeguarding the customary institutions and knowledge of indigenous peoples. This case study presents the facts—how the knowledge system and customary institutions of indigenous peoples are value-d...

This fact-finding mission report looks into human rights violations as well as abuses in the Chitwan National Park (CNP) of Nepal. following recent reports by BuzzFeed, The Kathmandu Post and other media, as well as other organisational reports, claiming the World Wide Fund for Nature Conservation (WWF) is responsible for gross human rights violations, including torture, sexual abuse and kill...

Since 2016, the Wampis women have been demanding that the Ministry of Development and Social Inclusion (MIDIS) make changes to its social programmes to ensure they are geographically and culturally appropriate1 and to enable the women themselves to conduct quality assessments of the State’s education and health services in the communities. The following text has been written thanks to their part...

Against all the odds, and despite the challenges that climate change represents for Latin America, women are demonstrating day in, day out that they have the ideas and the unique and essential skills to propose a radical change in the matrix of civilisation at this crucial point in humankind’s history.

How can indigenous peoples survive the dismantling of public policies and rights acquired by decades of work in Brazil? This process, resulting from setbacks to democracy, as described by the authors, shows that this is an emergency situation. There is a need to seek alternatives and for pressure from indigenous and civic organizations to help indigenous peoples exercise their rights. This report ...

This book comprises a total of 14 articles addressing the issue of deforestation in the Peruvian Amazon and its impacts, not only on the Amazonian environment and wildlife but particularly on the communities inhabiting the area. These impacts are being facilitated by informal dynamics for which the state is largely responsible and has failed to act promptly enough to put a stop to these dynamics a...

IWGIA’s latest human rights report examines the sociocultural impacts two particular projects – the Lake Turkana Wind Power project and Olkaria Geothermal Power plants – are having in several Indigenous communities in Kenya.

If we calculate all the risks, 90 million Adivasis are struggling for their survival, losing access to forests and suffering the gravest threat of being alienated from their forest lands and traditional habitations. This book is an attempt to understand the relationship between Adivasis and the forest, unfolding the ground realities of the Forest Rights Act. It exposes the dual role of the State ...

The purpose of this briefing paper is to provide data on: (1) the land tenure situation of Indigenous Peoples on a global level; (2) the trends of land grabbing; and (3) the drivers behind this phenomenon.

In the current global economic consensus of neoliberalism, maximizing profit is prioritized on behalf of respecting international human rights regulations. Ensuring multinational enterprises implement adequate corporate responsibility in Peru has been troublesome. This report describes issues of union member harassment, questionable tax practices and denial of local Indigenous communities their ri...

Since early August 2019, the most widespread and enduring fires in Bolivia’s history have been recorded in the country’s lowlands (Tierras Bajas). Widespread due to the large area burned and enduring because climatic conditions, along with the negligence of the authorities and even of those involved in the conflict themselves (who have risked setting fires in order to prepare the land for cult...

The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change of the Government of India published the Draft National Forest Policy of 2018 on 14 March 2018 and is expected to finalise the policy soon.  This draft policy provides for the adoption of а completely new legal framework that is discriminatory towards indigenous peoples and seeks to take away the rights of the indigenous peoples al...

pubThe world today faces many challenges: a global climate and biodiversity crisis, rising inequality, shrinking civic space in many countries, and increasing distrust in international institutions and national political systems. Indigenous peoples make up five percent of the world’s population and are disproportionately affected by much of this; but they are also key to many of the world’s so...

To create a room for indigenous peoples to discuss and analyse their experiences around autonomy and self-government, the international seminar "Right to Autonomy and Indigenous Self-Government as a manifestation of the Right to Self-Determination of Indigenous Peoples" was held on March 11, 12 and 13, 2019 in Mexico. Indigenous representatives from Chile, Bolivia, Peru, Colombia, Panama, Nicarag...

Organisée en parallèle à la quarante-deuxième session du Conseil des gouverneurs du FIDA Thème: Promouvoir les savoirs et innovations des peuples autochtones en faveur de la résilience aux changements climatiques et du développement durable

Climate change is the great global challenge of the 21st century. Because of climate change, undesirable disasters became intense and has caused loss of many lives and billions of dollars’ worth of properties. To respond to climate change, the United Nations founded the body called United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change with the global...

In Myanmar, women manage forests and depend on them for their livelihoods, but their tenure over these forests is insecure. Women often have distinct roles in managing forests as compared to men, and therefore also have expert knowledge about forests and different priorities for how forests are managed. Despite their distinct knowledge and priorities, women in Myanmar are under-represented in deci...

The report on the current state of Indigenous Peoples’ Lands, Territories and Resources (LTR) was prepared by the Indigenous Peoples Major Group (IPMG) to inform the implementation of global commitments to Sustainable Development and the various related processes for transformational change. It is a summary of regional reports written by indigenous researchers and experts under the guidance of t...

Rising tensions between states and indigenous peoples are reaching a tipping point, and with an ever-shrinking civic space worldwide, the topics of criminalisation of Indigenous Rights Defenders’ activities and their organisations; land rights issues; and access to justice are more important than ever. The Indigenous World 2019 adds to the documented records, highlighting the increase in a...

Myanmar has adopted a National Land Use Policy in 2016 which mandates the enactment of a comprehensive National Land Law. Once a National Land Law is passed, all other laws will have to be harmonized with its provisions. This new law will be critical for the future of Myanmar’s indigenous peoples, most of whom depend on land and natural resources for their livelihood. Control over land and reso...

An International Seminar to assess the global status and trends with regards to indigenous autonomies is taking place in Mexico City in March 2019. This meeting follows the work developed by indigenous organizations and the organizing institutions over the last few years. In January 2018, at its annual Expert Meeting, the UN Permanent Forum was requested to compile information on indigenous autono...

Myanmar is one of the most vulnerable countries in the world to climate change, with the threat of flooding, drought, cyclones, and changing rainfall patters threatening lives and livelihoods.1 Myanmar’s National Climate Change Strategy and Action Plan (2017) outlines the major risks that Myanmar will face. Heavier rainfall and shorter monsoons increase the risk of landslides in the uplands and ...