by Lucía Ixchíu

With the Yasuní River by our side, we set out to cross the border that separates the peoples and communities along what is now known as the line between Ecuador and Peru.

In the community of Yarina, in the province of Loreto, the sons and daughters of the river and the creek welcomed us with songs and contagious joy. There were embraces and greetings exchanged among the peoples, who asked us again and again to carry and amplify their voices as guardians of the forest.

For years, communities from different nations have been monitoring and protecting the rainforest across more than six million hectares of Amazon forest — all with their own resources and ancestral knowledge.

The Regional Organization of Indigenous Peoples of the East (ORPIO) has been working for several years, supporting initiatives from land titling to the development of a self-managed and pioneering monitoring system, enhanced by technology.


Amid the risks and impunity that define the defense of territory in Abya Yala — where defenders are threatened with death and persecuted by industries of all kinds — they remain steadfast, driven by the conviction to expand the territories where they can watch over and unite in the protection of one of the most important forests on the planet.

We swam in the river that, for hundreds of years, has sheltered thousands of species. We swam and saw the Sapara and Sarayaku peoples paddling together in the same canoe.

“The answers have always been in our territories,” said members of the flotilla.


Our gathering ended with a shared dinner and a detailed explanation from the apus of the community, local monitors, and community technicians about their work and how they watch over the forest against illegal extraction.

The conversation was led by women, young people, and those who place life at the center of everything. A blanket of stars accompanied us through the night, and, lulled by the river, we rested.

With the song of the birds, the sun rose and we set off once again, saying goodbye to Yarina and to everything it taught us in such a short time.

This time, we left with greater hope: the future is now — and it is built by the peoples who walk, create, and, like ants, change the world.

To follow the full journey of the Yaku Mama Flotilla, visit: https://amazonflotilla.quipa.org/