News
The government of Caquetá Focuses Resources on its Indigenous Communities
On November 12, 2015, the 10,181 indigenous inhabitants of the Colombian department (state) of Caquetá compiled all of their needs and their historically violated rights in a single document. After three years of work in this region, a first comprehensive indigenous public policy was approved.
Read MoreColombia’s Inga-Kamentsa Achieve Historic Territorial Expansion
In December 2015, with ACT’s assistance, Colombia’s Inga-Kamentsa people were granted governance rights over roughly 100,000 acres of their traditional lands. The community had laid claims to those lands for more than 300 years.
Read MorePushing Back Against an Amazon Gold Rush: Maps Lead the Way
“During a recent visit to rainforests of Suriname, I noticed that a particular problem is increasingly weighing on the minds of the Trio Indians of Kwamalasamutu village: some men are being seduced by the opportunity for pay in distant gold mining ventures, leaving the village for long periods of time and occasionally not returning at all.”
Read MoreThe Indigenous Peoples of Caquetá Put a Human Face on Politics
Recently, a comprehensive indigenous public policy was officially signed by the government of Colombia’s Caquetá region. The policy—drafted by seven indigenous groups with technical assistance from ACT—will, for the first time, provide a platform for the indigenous communities to have a say in Caquetá’s future.
Read MoreThe Campaign of the Indigenous Peoples of Colombia’s Caquetá Region to Preserve their Culture
In the past several years, the indigenous peoples of the Colombian department of Caquetá have taken enormous steps forward in asserting their rights, creating a representative body and crafting a recently ratified indigenous public policy for the region. ACT guided and assisted the communities through these processes.
Read MoreColombia’s University of the Amazon and ACT Present Certificate Course to Indigenous Communities of the Department of Caquetá
In November 2015, Colombia’s University of the Amazon (Universidad de la Amazonia), in partnership with ACT, held a certificate course for indigenous representatives on the development of self-administered studies and surveys for the proper land use zoning and administration of indigenous territories in the Colombian Amazon.
Read MoreBringing Light to Others: Updates from the Barefoot College Experience
In India, November 11 marked the beginning of Diwali, the Festival of Lights, when Indian Hindus—and other Hindus around the world—celebrate the victory of light over darkness, knowledge over ignorance, good over evil, and hope over despair. The festival is evidenced by millions of lights shining on housetops, outside doors and windows, and around temples…
Read MoreCaquetá adopts groundbreaking indigenous peoples’ policy
On November 11, 2015, in a historic and positive development for the indigenous peoples of Caquetá in Colombia, the departmental Assembly of the Department of Caquetá passed ordinance 031, establishing a departmental indigenous peoples’ public policy and forming an indigenous coordinating council responsible for the policy’s design and implementation. Through this ordinance, the rights of…
Read MoreMark J. Plotkin on Protecting the Amazon's Remaining Isolated Peoples
The U.S. writer H.L. Mencken famously remarked, “There is always a well-known solution to every human problem — neat, plausible and wrong.” The question of how to protect the Amazon’s isolated tribes certainly falls under this principle.
Read MoreGold mining explodes in Suriname, puts forests and people at risk
A newly released report published by the Amazon Conservation Team titled “Amazon Gold Rush: Gold Mining in Suriname” explores the rapid expansion and impacts of gold mining in Suriname through cartography and digital storytelling.
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