According to recent studies, indigenous Mexicans have an average of 4.6 schooling years compared to a mean of 7.9 years among non-indigenous people.

UNESCO: Bilingual Literacy for Life

Australia is in the throes of a heated political debate on a question as old as European settlement there: the competition between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians over access to land.

ECONOMIST: The aboriginal patterns that haunt Australia | The

Non-Western Societies and Indigenous Peoples, Archaeology and: Archaeology and South Asia.

UNESCO: Purpose/Objectives of the Chair/UNITWIN Network

It provides a mechanism recognized by both the scientific and policy communities to synthesize, review, assess and critically evaluate relevant information and knowledge generated worldwide by governments, academia, scientific organizations, non-governmental organizations and indigenous communities.

UNESCO: Social and Human Sciences

According to the non-profit group SocioEnvironmental Institute (ISA), there are now 300 workers -- from indigenous families to former illegal loggers -- who make a living collecting seeds.

CNN: STORY HIGHLIGHTS