The all-female patrol guarding Ecuador's Amazon Rainforest [View all]

[Judi Lynn]

1 day ago
By Gabriela Barzallo,
Features correspondent



The Yuturi Warmi, an Ecuadorian patrol group, has vowed to protect their community's land in the Amazon Rainforest from the pollution of extractive industries – and their efforts appear to be working.

It is the break of dawn in the Serena community, in the middle of the Ecuadorian Amazon. Along the Jatunyacu River, which later joins the Amazon River in the Napo Province, Elsa Cerda, a 43-year-old indigenous Kichwa woman, brews guayusa leaves – a native plant from the rainforest – in a pot.

It marks the start of the Guayusa Upina, a ritual performed by Amazonian indigenous peoples before beginning their daily activities. This tradition is more than a routine; it's a spiritual connection to their ancestral roots.

As the first rays of light begin to filter through the tree canopy, a diverse assembly of 35 women, ranging from 23 to 85 years old, arrives one by one at the ceremony. The eldest among them, Corina Andy, who is fondly called "abuela", "the grandmother", leads them in a collective cleansing ritual using medicinal plants.



Leila Cerda and Elsa Cerda, leaders of the Serena community, stand by the Jatunyacu River, which is at the heart of their community (Credit: Ana Maria Buitron)

Meanwhile, the younger women chant and dance to traditional songs in their native language, Kichwa Napo.

More:
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20240503-the-indigenous-women-fighting-mining-in-ecuadors-amazon

"Strength, strength!" Cerda shouts, and as the echo lingers, the women respond with "guard, guard!".