OUR CHILDREN'S RIVER
My name is Nixon, and I'm an A'i Cofán filmmaker, artist, and member of the #Sinangoe #IndigenousGuard.
You might be wondering what that means: an Indigenous guard. To understand it better, allow me to take you on a journey into my ancestral territory in the Upper #Amazon, a land of dense #forests and towering trees, crossed by surging #rivers. A land preyed on by #loggers and #miners.
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To understand our reality, I invite you to watch 'Our Children's River', a short documentary film produced by my community in collaboration with #CeiboAlliance, #AmazonFrontlines and #HonnoldFoundation.
Across the #Amazon, Indigenous guards are unarmed patrols that peacefully defend ancestral territories against threats like #oil, #mining and #poaching. We use diverse technologies to monitor our lands, and when necessary, force out illegal operations and actors.
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Most of this daily work, which involves lengthy hikes and patient observation, goes unseen.
This film depicts the process of the #IndigenousGuard: its patrols, its watchful vigilance over the #landscape, and its support of the #community. Our work as guards helps ensure that destruction in the #Amazon doesn't advance, and that our community has the vital space it needs to live life on our own terms. Just a few years ago,
#OurChildrensRiver #ElRioDeNuestrosHijos
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the painstaking work of our guard forced the Ecuadorian government to nullify dozens of #MiningLicenses.
But our efforts don't just support our people, they support the world as a whole. We protect #rivers and #WaterSystems that benefit all of #humanity. We shield climate-critical #forests that house enormous amounts of #biodiversity. Without us, there would be nothing in the way of extractive interests devouring our planet's largest #rainforest,
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and polluting the waters that nourish our planet.
So I invite you to watch this film, with a hand on your heart. Because behind any image, any film, is a wider story. A larger #collective process which is often ignored.
We in the small community of #Sinangoe do this crucial work of #protection but are continuously forgotten by the state and public authorities. We need to constantly fight to get our voices heard and our needs recognized.
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So here's my message. Value the work being done by #IndigenousCommunities on the #frontlines.
Stand with the #defenders that keep #territories protected. Together, let us build a #CollectiveConscience that supports us all.
For our waters and rivers,
Nixon
#Amazon Frontlines
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anna_lillith 🇺🇦🌱🐖