'We fight day and night': The Amazon women guarding their rainforest from mining

By Graham Keeley
June 16, 2024 6:00 am(Updated 6:01 am)

Elsa Cerda starts the day at the crack of dawn with an indigenous ritual which involves brewing guayusa leaves, a native plant from the rainforest.

The 43-year-old indigenous Kichwa woman is the leader of the “Yuturi Warmi”, an all female group who have come together to guard part of Ecuador’s Amazon rainforest.

They mount patrols to stop mining and logging companies from destroying the rich natural habitat.

Cerda shouts: “Strength, strength!” The others respond with “guard, guard!”

This band of sisters form a thin line of defence to preserve the land and rivers from outsiders who jeopardise biodiversity. But the threat is getting harder to resist.

The women speak in Kichwa, a language which is spoken by an estimated 500,000 people who live in Ecuador and Colombia. They are part of the Serena community, one of about 50 indigenous groups living in this part of the Amazon.

More:
https://inews.co.uk/news/world/fight-day-night-amazon-women-guarding-rainforest-mining-3111755