The team visited partners in Panama, Mexico and Colombia to record new stories with Guna, Embera, Otomí and Tikuna communities.
These stories give different perspectives of the multifaceted relationships that indigenous communities have to the biodiversity that they steward.
The Guna, who are successful protectors of the forests along their coastline, are now trying to gain proper control over the seas between their island homes, where luxury boats pass through with little concern for the marine ecosystems.
Embera communities highlighted the importance of their culture for the protection of biodiversity. Ancestral connections to their forests come alive in the Embera cultural traditions, which Embera youth are reviving through dance, bodypainting and film.
In Mexico, Otomí communities play an important role in protecting the winter home of the Monarch butterfly that migrates from Canada and the USA. Several have won awards for their conservation efforts that also serve to maintain healthy water supplies in the region.
In Colombia, the Tikuna, Yaguas and Cocamas who live in San Martín de Amacayacu are treated as obstacle to conservation, when they have lived harmoniously there for millennia. Their rights have been systematically violated since the National Park was created in 1975.