Leadership

Guided by ancestral wisdom and collective responsibility, Indigenous leaders across the Amazon are protecting their territories, cultures, and forests while offering a powerful vision for our shared future.

Amazonian Indigenous Leaders Brazil

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Publications by the Articulation of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil (APIB) and Coordination of the Indigenous Organizations of the Brazilian Amazon (COIAB)

International Complaints Dossier of Brazil's Indigenous Peoples written and published by APIB the National Indigenous Organization of Brazil

COMMUNICATORS BRAZIL

VISUAL ARTISTS BRAZIL

Amazonian Indigenous Leaders Ecuador

Patricia Gualinga, Kichwa Indigenous leader from Ecuador, wearing traditional adornments and advocating for Amazon rainforest protection

Publications by the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of the Ecuadorian Amazon (CONFENIAE)

CONFENIAE publication documenting Indigenous struggles, environmental defense, and community resistance in the Ecuadorian Amazon

COMMUNICATORS ECUADOR

VISUAL ARTISTS ECUADOR

Amazonian Indigenous Leaders Peru

Indigenous Ashaninka leader Ruth Buendía wearing orange dress and red face paintMestoquiari from the Peruvian Amazon wearing a

Publications by the Interethnic Association for the Development of the Peruvian Rainforest (AIDESEP)

AIDESEP publication about the defense of indigenous defenders in the Peruvian Amazon.

Overview of AIDESEP publication about a Fund to fund projects by indigenous women living in the Peruvian Amazon.

COMMUNICATORS PERU

VISUAL ARTISTS PERU

Amazonian Indigenous Leaders Colombia

Indigenous Maguta leader Harold Rincon Ipuchima from the Colombian Amazon

Publications by GAIA Amazonia Colombia

Overview of a publication by Gaia Amazonas about the establishment of 'Indigenous Territorial Entities' in Colombia

Overview of a publication called Plan de vida - Life plans for the indigenous territories that make up the Macroterritory of the Jaguars of Yuruparí' in the Colombian Amazon

Overview of a publication about mercury contamination in the Colombian Amazon

COMMUNICATORS COLOMBIA

VISUAL ARTISTS COLOMBIA

Amazonian Indigenous Leaders Venezuela

Indigenous Baniva leader Eligio DaCosta of the Venezuelan Amazon wearing a black baseball cap and a black t-shirt

Publications by the socio-environmental Organization WATANIBA

Overview of a publication about 'Protocol for Free, Prior, and Informed Consultation from the Perspective of the Uwottüja People' in the Venezuelan Amazon

VISUAL ARTISTS VENEZUELA

The Issues Shaping Contemporary Indigenous Leadership in the Amazon

Although Indigenous leaders across the Amazon represent hundreds of different peoples, cultures and territories, many speak about remarkably similar challenges and aspirations. Their work extends far beyond environmental protection, encompassing governance, justice, education, culture, health and sustainable development. Together, these perspectives reveal a holistic vision of resilient societies in which people and nature thrive together.

Across the profiles featured on FightForAmazonia, ten overarching themes consistently emerge:

Indigenous governance and self-determination;
territorial rights and environmental justice;
justice, human rights and accountability;
community safety and the protection of Indigenous defenders;
climate change and ecological resilience;
women's leadership and gender equality;
Indigenous knowledge and worldviews;
cultural identity and revitalization;
education, health and future generations;
and sustainable livelihoods and forest-based economies.

Rather than representing separate issues, these themes are deeply interconnected. Together, they reflect a shared understanding that protecting the Amazon depends not only on conserving forests, but also on strengthening the rights, knowledge, cultures and institutions of the peoples who have stewarded them for generations.

Publications by Coordination of Indigenous Organizations of the Amazon River Basin (COICA)

Overview of a Publication about the Bioregional Plan by the sacred headwaters initiative in the Amazon

COMMUNICATION

ART - ACTIVISM