Indigenous women are more likely to experience poverty because of the dominance of colonial systems and the continuation of societal discrimination based not only on race and gender, but also on class and culture. Social, political, and economic marginalization of Indigenous women limits access to necessary and appropriate supports and services that reduce the impacts of poverty. The most successful methods of combatting poverty are empowering women through increased employment, access to education, access to health care, protection of cultural practices, and socio-economic autonomy. The adverse conditions of colonization and the current paternalistic top down government approaches have created an environment where Indigenous women are politically disenfranchised and economically marginalized. This means Indigenous women are excluded from decisionmaking positions and forced into financially vulnerable positions which poses further challenges to economic and social development.