Indigenous Youth in the City

The number of indigenous peoples living in urban areas is increasing, and in some countries like Canada and Chile, more than half the indigenous population now lives in cities.

Poverty and marginalization, poor housing and labour conditions characterize the lives of many indigenous peoples living in cities throughout the world. On the other hand, cities also offer new opportunities and urban life can boost creativity and entrepreneurship.

Indigenous youth is particularly impacted by inadequate education systems, high unemployment and social problems in their home communities, and are frequently forced to move to the cities if they are to benefit from employment and education opportunities.

In the city they may feel a split between the world of their indigenous families and communities, and that represented by the urban environment. They may however also find new ways of expressing and recreating their indigenous identity, thereby widening the concept.

In many countries, indigenous youth are engaging in the renewing of the indigenous movement, sometimes in manners and with visions that are not always shared and encompassed by the traditional indigenous organisations.

About The Project

The aim of the project is to contribute to raising awareness about and creating understanding for the situation of indigenous youth living in cities by offering young indigenous city dwellers a virtual and visual forum for intercontinental and intergenerational exchange.

The project was initiated with a series of workshops with urban indigenous youth in Malaysia, India, Thailand, Bolivia and Brazil throughout 2008 and 2009. During the workshops indigenous youth was invited to discuss their situation and perspectives as young indigenous people living in cities.

The participants also received training in digital photography. The idea was to give them a tool to document their lives and express their views, fears, joys and hopes through a visual media that could be shared across borders and generations.

The goal is to add photos from young urban indigenous people from all over the world. The material is published on the web and itinerant exhibitions will be held in different regions.