This publication offers a wide-ranging perspective on indigenous peoples’ rights to lands territories and resources examining legislation and agreements at the national and international level identifying successful practices and continued obstacles and suggesting ways forward. Adopted in 2007 the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples positions the right to self-determination and collective rights to lands territories and resources at its core. Previously two of the most politically charged issues under negotiation the right to self-determination and the right to natural resources on indigenous lands and territories remain politicized more than 10 years later. Specifically addressed in Articles 25 through 32 indigenous peoples’ relationship to their land territory and resources is at the heart of their identity well-being and culture while preservation of the environment transmitted through generations of traditional knowledge is at the center of their existence. As the world increasingly recognizes the negative impacts of climate change and environmental degradation to health food security and overall peace and security the importance of indigenous knowledge and territorial rights is becoming more widely acknowledged. Moreover the 2030 Agenda’s integrated approach to economic environmental and social development within a human rights framework gives space to demonstrate how indigenous stewardship of lands territories and resources can achieve accelerated action towards implementation of several Sustainable Development Goals.

At its first session the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) requested the United Nations System to produce a report on the state of the world’s indigenous peoples (SOWIP). The first edition covered all six thematic areas of the Forum’s mandate (Economic and social development Culture Environment Education Health and Human rights. The second edition focused on Indigenous Peoples’ Access to Health Services. This third edition of SOWIP provides a comprehensive overview of the current achievements and challenges facing indigenous peoples centred on the theme of education. The report is evidence-based through seven chapters that will depict the situation in the seven socio-cultural regions determined to give broad representation of the world’s indigenous peoples (Africa; Arctic; Asia; Central and South America and the Caribbean; Central and Eastern Europe Russian Federation Central Asia and Transcaucasia; North America; and the Pacific).

While indigenous peoples make up around 370 million of the world’s population – some 5 per cent – they constitute around one-third of the world’s 900 million extremely poor rural people. Every day indigenous communities all over the world face issues of violence and brutality. Indigenous peoples are stewards of some of the most biologically diverse areas of the globe and their biological and cultural wealth has allowed indigenous peoples to gather a wealth of traditional knowledge which is of immense value to all humankind. The publication discusses many of the issues addressed by the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and is a cooperative effort of independent experts working with the Secretariat of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. It covers poverty and well-being culture environment contemporary education health human rights and includes a chapter on emerging issues.