Is there a light more profound than that which illuminates the soul? 


by

Rut Mottoccanchi

Conservation Leader

Profesional en Ecoturismo, especializada en desarrollo de emprendimientos con impacto ambiental y social. Con experiencia en diseño de espacios participativos para comunidades amazónicas y mentoría a jóvenes en el desarrollo de emprendimientos en etapa temprana, dentro y fuera de áreas naturales protegidas.

Learn more about Rut Mottoccanchi


April 2, 2022

Is there a light more profound than that which illuminates the soul? 

 

Translated by Carolyn Keller and Brian Griffiths

Rut Mottoccanchi on Canopy Walkway

Is there a light more profound than that which illuminates the soul? 

I could see it in their looks, in the string of smiles from the conversations that brought us together in the wonder of knowing a world where the wildlife has free rein and is constantly transforming itself to create new life. 

The heartbeats of that same forest created a link between the Maijuna and ourselves: the ACEER and OnePlanet team, who met on the shores of the Sucusari River.

In the small meadow where the community’s colorful houses spread out, there were children attracted by what we could teach them, community members traveling to our meeting for the day’s new adventure, and us, distributed with our cameras in hand to record more about the Maijuna culture, or with our backpacks, ready to hike on trails that seemed invisible to us, but upon which our capable local guides could lead us and bring us back again with the samples of earth from the clay licks, so we could later identify the nutritional value that they have for Amazon mammals. 

In the time we spent together, everyone shared a willingness both to learn and teach each other.

In the time we spent together, everyone shared a willingness both to learn and teach each other. One afternoon, Agapito, one of the Maijuna elders, showed us within one kilometer plants that our team had overlooked in our daily passing. These plants could be used as deodorants, repellants, or as healing agents. Beyond these properties, some of these plants also led to stories that connected us to the Maijunacosmovision, like the myth of the “machimangua” seeds that, according to Maijuna culture, gave rise to the giant otter (Pteronura brasiliensis). We were amazed at all of their knowledge – and that Agapito humbly said that it was the little he knew.

Team Arriving via Sucusari River in Peru.
Small meadow with community’s colorful houses
Learning from each other
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Our stay was short; however, it was enough to generate our respect for Maijuna men and women who have protected this swath of the Amazon for generations. This, their legacy for humanity, that we had shared through the #Sucusari2022 hashtag on social networks, emitted that light that we feel when we have been truly happy. We’re now no longer there, but the Maijuna remain, silently and tenaciously caring for their home, the home that pumps oxygen to the planet. Do we deserve to lose it? 

 

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