Indigenous rights, health and traditional medicine systems

The health of Indigenous Peoples around the world is tied to longstanding Indigenous knowledge practices and access to Indigenous traditional medicine systems. Indigenous communities continue to have concerns, however, about their ability to ensure intergenerational transfer of Indigenous traditiona...

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Published in:Bulletin of the World Health Organization Vol. 103; no. 11; pp. 722 - 729
Main Authors: Redvers, Nicole, Menzel, Kelly, Carroll, Danya, Zavaleta, Carol, Kokunda, Sylvia, Kobei, Daniel, Nelson Rojas, Juan
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Switzerland World Health Organization 01.11.2025
Subjects:
Access
Colonialism
Colonization
Community involvement
Culture
Health
Health care
Health services
Health Services Accessibility
Health Services, Indigenous - organization & administration
Human Rights
Humans
Indigenous knowledge
Indigenous languages
Indigenous peoples
Information sharing
Intergenerational transfer
Knowledge
Land rights
Language revitalization
Local knowledge
Medicine
Medicine, Traditional
Native peoples
Native rights
Planetariums
Populations
Protection
Regeneration
Rights
Self determination
Sovereignty
Traditional medicine
Traditions
Well being
ISSN:0042-9686, 1564-0604, 1564-0604
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:The health of Indigenous Peoples around the world is tied to longstanding Indigenous knowledge practices and access to Indigenous traditional medicine systems. Indigenous communities continue to have concerns, however, about their ability to ensure intergenerational transfer of Indigenous traditional medicine knowledge. These concerns stem from the continued lack of Indigenous rights as a result of colonization, a lack of protection of land rights and different levels of Indigenous self-determination around the world, all of which affect traditional medicine access and practices. Indigenous Peoples' access to their traditional medicine systems will therefore continue to depend on their access to self-determination, land and cultural rights, as well as on Indigenous data sovereignty. A balanced approach to Indigenous health and well-being is needed that prioritizes Indigenous traditional practices, community involvement, and Indigenous cultural and language revitalization (with support for ongoing intergenerational knowledge transfer). These elements are important for bringing back ecological harmony to Indigenous Peoples, communities and the planet. Additionally, with sufficient resources and support, Indigenous Peoples and their concepts of health can be a blueprint for harmony for people and health systems more widely, with Indigenous Peoples being a key determinant of planetary health. We outline some key points to ensure that the concepts of health and well-being of Indigenous Peoples and their Indigenous traditional medicine systems are maintained going forward for individual, community and planetary health.
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ISSN:0042-9686
1564-0604
1564-0604
DOI:10.2471/BLT.24.292882