Amazonia

Change comes from Exchange: Indigenous education practices sustain Native cultures in the 21st century

By Carolyn Keller and Charles Sunday If you live in the U.S., it’s easier than it should be to relegate Native American experience to history. When we do get news about Native American and First Nations communities in North America, post-elementary school narratives – the ones beyond construction paper hats as Thanksgiving rolls around – … Read more

On the road to Desolation (El Camino a la Desolación)

by Vítor da Silva Our canoe hits the embankment of the river, and the 69-year old Maijuna elder, Agapo, pushes me up into the forest as he balances barefoot on his canoe. The forest is thick and there is no path anywhere around me. I wait for Agapo to tie his canoe, and with the … Read more

In the Garden of Deeden: Permaculture

Although we are now into January, it is not too soon to be thinking of the coming year’s growing season, and employing permaculture techniques just might be the way you can create your own backyard ecosystem regardless of how small a space you have for gardening. Permaculture is an agricultural strategy that seeks the integration … Read more

In the Garden of Deeden: Ginger Beer

A visit to any market in Amazonia reveals a rich array of locally grown fruits and vegetables including a variety of fragrant, flavorful spices.  Included will be the widely popular ginger root.  Ginger, Zingiber officinale, known locally as “jengibre” is not native to Amazonia but widely grown there for its culinary and medicinal properties.  In … Read more

Mis sueños hechos realidad

Nací en Piura, una región al norte de Perú. A los 16 años junto con mis amigos tomé la decisión de salir de mi pueblo para dedicarme a trabajar. Trabajé en diferentes lugares e hice nuevos amigos, como también decidí viajar a Puerto Maldonado. He trabajado en diferentes trabajos durante toda mi vida, uno de … Read more

¿Por qué debemos conservar los bosques?

No he encontrado manera de responder esta pregunta sin conectarla con lo que me ha movido durante los últimos años a dar cada paso de aprendizaje sobre la vida en “el monte” (como la llamamos coloquialmente en Madre de Dios).  Cinco años atrás, en un proceso de recopilación de materiales audiovisuales para difundir información amena … Read more