Poverty is caused by economic development.

[Senior citizen]

Indigenous peoples who haven't been touched by economic development, may not have any money, but they aren't poor.

They have homes, which they build themselves and don't have to pay rent on.

They have food, which they hunt, gather, and grow, and don't have to buy.

They have clothing, if their climate or culture requires it, which they also make themselves from whatever is available and appropriate.

And they have culture, in the form of music, dance, stories, and art.

All this without having what we call jobs.

The minute "economic development" comes in, however, they become poor. They are forced off their land so that it can be farmed or robbed of minerals or oil. Once forced off their land, they no longer have food, clothing and shelter without having to pay for it, so they need jobs. Since they are not schooled in technology, they have few marketable skills, and usually find only the most menial jobs are open to them. So they now have money, but usually not enough to live on. Their diet becomes less varied, their lifestyles less healthy, and they cannot afford medical care.

Without economic development, they wouldn't have had any money, but they wouldn't have been poor.