Uncertainties: The Future of Indigenous Societies

Abstract

The indigenous struggle to survive and to adapt to continually changing worlds continues across the globe, but the battleground has shifted. From an over-heated and crowded office on the outskirts of Moscow, the staff of Riapon (the Russsian Association of Indigenous Peoples) struggle with the complexities of developing economic development training courses, seek ways to ensure indigenous participation in the expanding Russian electoral process, support political and legislative reforms necessary to protect traditional cultures, and network with aboriginal organizations from around the world. Modern administrative offices in the Nass Valley of northern British Columbia, supported by a multi-million-dollar land-claims settlement signed by the Nisga’a people, provide visual evidence of the pride and professionalism of First Nations negotiators and government officials. Penan forest dwellers show up in traditional dress on university campuses, trying to generate outrage about commercial logging practices in Southeast Asia. United Nations gatherings — from South Africa and Geneva to the Canadian North — regularly devote a considerable amount of time to grappling with indigenous issues, with indigenous politicians sharing podiums with the sophisticated diplomats of one of the world’s most important organizations. Scholars who previously studied indigenous peoples with academic detachment and paternalism now work closely and cooperatively with elders and spiritual leaders to understand the complexities of indigenous world view.