Building the evidence base for inclusion of indigenous peoples is a complex task. In different countries, and within them, indigenous peoples are described by different names: ethnic minorities, scheduled tribes, first peoples/nations, aboriginals, ethnic groups, Adivasi, hill people and others. There is no single definition. Estimates of the number of indigenous peoples worldwide also vary, from 300 to 370 million people.

At the micro level, there are many ethnographic and anthropological studies about individual indigenous groups. What is still needed, in order to get clearer understanding of development challenges faced by indigenous populations around the world, is systematic, comparable research on a global scope.

In the developing world, most research on indigenous peoples has focused on Latin America. However, widening the lens to capture the entire developing world reveals a stunning result - the largest share of indigenous peoples actually live outside of this region; and while there are some encouraging instances where indigenous peoples are beginning to close the development gap, the global indigenous population often remain among the poorest of the poor, and faces many common challenges.

During this webinar, Gillette Hall, the co-author of the first global study on indigenous populations and poverty, will recap some the research findings from the book Indigenous Peoples, Poverty and Development, and discuss holes in the research that are still needed to be addressed.

The webinar will be moderated by Maitreyi Bordia Das of the World Bank Group.