10 Indigenous Initiatives for Land Recovery

In different regions of Brazil, Indigenous peoples have been recovering lands transformed into pastures, degraded by mining, or used as garbage dumps, also taking on the work of restoring vegetation and reestablishing the conditions to live in these places. These are communities that are moving in the opposite direction to the fronts of destruction: instead of limiting themselves to defending what remains, they have begun to fight to reclaim what has been lost. Here we highlight 10 reports published by Mongabay on how various Indigenous peoples in the country, combining technology and ancestral knowledge, are transforming their territories into better places to live. Ritual in the Maxakali Indigenous Land (MG). Photo: Xavier Bartaburu/Mongabay. Why are the Maxakali calling upon spirits to recover the Atlantic Forest? Confined to small Indigenous lands taken over by pastures in northeastern Minas Gerais, the Tikmũ’ũn/Maxakali are recovering areas of Atlantic Forest and implementing agroforestry backyards through the Hãmhi project. Launched in 2023, the initiative trains and pays Indigenous agroforestry agents and nursery workers. The work aims to combat hunger and restore the vegetation necessary for the cultural and religious life of the people. The forest is the place where the yãmĩyxop live, spirit-people whose songs preserve knowledge about an Atlantic Forest that has nearly disappeared in the region. Carl and Isabel Gakran (with Zágtxo, the couple's daughter), coordinators of the Zág Institute, in the Ibirama-Laklãnõ Indigenous Land (SC). Photo: Anderson Coelho. Xokleng people restore sacred araucarias in Indigenous land in Santa Catarina. Zág is how the Laklãnõ/Xokleng refer to the araucaria — tree…This article was originally published on Mongabay