Working with Indigenous peoples is central to how Practical Action supports lasting change in Latin America and around the world. Generations of lived experience have given Indigenous communities deep knowledge of forests, rivers and soils. As biodiversity loss, climate change and poverty intersect, that knowledge becomes vital. Supporting Indigenous leadership, especially women’s leadership, helps people protect the land and build livelihoods that depend on healthy ecosystems. This issue of Small World looks more closely at what that work means in practice, particularly as part of the Biodiverse Landscape Fund (BLF), a project working with Indigenous peoples in Peru and Ecuador to tackle some critical problems for people and planet.
The work is happening in the forest region where the Andes meet the Amazon, spanning parts of Peru and Ecuador and home to Indigenous communities who have long cared for this land. The project works with Indigenous organisations to protect forests, support sustainable farming, strengthen local leadership and create opportunities that don’t rely on clearing more land.
Here are some extra photos from the project that we couldn’t fit into the magazine but wanted to share with you.
The communities boats lie together on the rivers edge. The river provides the only means of reaching many of the communities we work with.
A man travels up the river with children in his boat, for many children the trip to school involves travelling along the river.
A community member surveys the devastation from illegal logging.
Sunset on the Marañón River.
Communities living on the edges of the river and forest rely on both for their livelihoods.
In these remote communities solar energy provides a valuable source of electricity and means productive activities can carry on after dark.
This remote and rugged landscape is home to rich biodiversity and many groups of Indigenous peoples, all of which is under threat from climate change and illegal logging and mining.
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Video: Solutions from the Ground: Progress of the BLF Andes Amazon Project in Ecuador
In Ecuador, where the Andes meet the Amazon, the BLF Andes Amazon Project is driving solutions to conserve biodiversity, strengthen Indigenous territorial governance, and improve local livelihoods.
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