 August 9th is the International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples in recognition of the first meeting of the United Nations Working Group on Indigenous Peoples in 1982. Referring to the stay, Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon said, Together, let us celebrate and recognize the stories, cultures, and unique identities of Indigenous Peoples around the world. At the same time, let us work to strengthen their rights and support their aspirations. When Columbus landed in what is now generally referred to as the Americas, there were estimates of roughly 54 million Indigenous Peoples. They are dwindled now to only a fraction of that due to disease, slavery, forced dislocation, ethnic cleansing, and genocide. On December 31st, 2009, President Obama signed the Native American Apology Resolution to apologize for all the tragic things done to the Indigenous Peoples of the United States of America. The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, a philosophical and cultural compromise among nations and non-governmental agencies, was endorsed by the United States in 2010, reportedly the last country in the United Nations to do so. A good but not perfect document, it speaks among other things of full guarantees against genocide, redress for deprivation of cultural values and ethnic identities, and the right to maintain and strengthen spiritual relationships with the land, water, seas, including sea ice, flora, and fauna.