Last week, the Indigenous Council of Roraima (CIR) hosted an important exchange between indigenous peoples from Brazil and Peru. The meeting aimed to strengthen the exchange of experiences on territorial protection, environmental monitoring, communication and adaptation strategies to climate change experienced by the indigenous peoples of Roraima.
During the meeting promoted by the Rainforest Foundation US, in partnership with Danida and partner indigenous organizations, indigenous leaders from Peru, as well as guests from the Wai Wai and Ye'kwana peoples, visited the organization's headquarters and visited the Situation Room of the Department of Territorial, Environmental and Climate Change Management (DGTAMC), which uses the Pantera system for real-time monitoring of fires and rainfall. They listened to the experiences developed by the indigenous communities of Roraima through the Territorial and Environmental Management Plans (PGTAs), the Indigenous Adaptation Plans, the performance of the indigenous brigades and the actions carried out by the CIR departments.
Initiatives from the Legal Department were presented, such as the translations of Convention 169 of the International Labor Organization (ILO) into the Macuxi and Wapichana languages, in addition to the Consultation Protocols built with indigenous communities. The Communication team shared the experience of the Wakywaa Indigenous Communicators Network, presented the safety protocol developed for communicators, highlighting the strengthening of territorial communication and the role of indigenous communication in the defense of territories.
The exchange held in the capital and on the ground of the territory enabled dialogues between leaders, communicators, firefighters and representatives of indigenous organizations, strengthening the exchange of knowledge and experiences between the peoples.
For Sineia do Vale, coordinator of the Department of Territorial, Environmental and Climate Change Management, the exchange represents an important space for collective construction among indigenous peoples.
"This exchange comes to bring the experiences shared by the indigenous peoples of Peru, but also to look at our experiences in Roraima, how we work on the issue of monitoring, brigades, GPVTI, operators in law and also communicators", he highlighted.
Sineia highlighted the partnership built more than 20 years ago between the CIR and the Rainforest Foundation US, which has made it possible to strengthen the institution and autonomy of the indigenous peoples of the State.
"They have been working to support and strengthen the CIR on sustainability issues, with support for women and, currently, mainly supporting monitoring and indigenous brigades,"he said.
The participants visited the traditional Caracaranã Lake, in the Raposa Serra do Sol region, where there was an exchange with local leaders about the most diverse experiences. On the occasion, they learned more about the construction of Territorial and Environmental Management Plans (PGTAs), also known as life plans, instruments built by indigenous peoples to plan and strengthen the protection, sustainable use and management of their territories.
Currently, the CIR has already built, together with indigenous communities, more than 20 Territorial and Environmental Management Plans, strengthening actions for the protection and organization of territories.
Following the program, the participants traveled to the Serra da Moça Indigenous Land, in the Serra da Moça community, and saw the work of the PREVFOGO brigades, a partnership between Ibama and the CIR, in addition to the Pataxibas Women's Brigade, the first women's brigade in Northern Brazil.
The peoples of Peru shared reports about the large fires faced in 2024, during the El Niño weather phenomenon. The experience of the indigenous brigades in Roraima became a reference for the participants, mainly due to the role of women in fighting and preventing forest fires.
"We, women, can too. Indigenous women here are moving forward, being leaders and teaching how to be on the front line. It's different from Peru. Here things are working. There, many women are still ashamed to speak. This training is very important and we are going to take this example to the Ticuna women", said Rubi La Samuel, from the Ticuna people of Peru.
The Pataxiba brigade, Bruna Bentes Macuxi, from the Sucuba community, Alto Cauamé region, also spoke about the importance of women's participation in the brigades.
"When doors open for us, we conquer spaces, learn and teach as well, to have more and more strength and more women within the brigade", he said.
The participants of the exchange were invited to visit the base of the brigades in the Serra da Moça community, where the "Sowing to Reforest" project is developed, a nursery of native plants supported by the CIR with the objective of recovering areas degraded by fire.
The initiative is a collective project that brings together the community, firefighters and students from the local school in the process of reforestation of the territory. The leaders planted seedlings in the nursery. Each organization planted a tree, which will be under the care of the community's firefighters, in a moment marked by emotion, exchange of experiences and collective work.
"We bring the children to follow the sowing of the plants and then we take them to plant these seeds already germinated. We have plants here such as pau-rainha, cedar, mirixi, ipê, copaiba and açaí, woods that exist in our territory and that we use on a daily basis. Our project is for 3 thousand native seedlings", explained one of the brigade members.
Throughout the program, the exchange strengthened the dialogue between indigenous peoples, promoting the exchange of experiences built in the territories and bringing together initiatives aimed at environmental protection, indigenous communication and combating climate change.
For the general tuxaua of the Indigenous Council of Roraima (CIR), Amarildo Macuxi, the meeting reinforces the importance of unity among indigenous peoples in the defense of territories.
"When indigenous peoples meet to share experiences, everyone is strengthened. What we are building in Roraima is born from the territories and today also contributes to other peoples in the Amazon", he said.
The program director of the Rainforest Foundation US, Cristine Halvorson, highlighted the importance of the experiences built in Roraima and the protagonism of indigenous communities.
"It is very strong to see how indigenous communities are leading concrete solutions for territorial protection, communication and combating climate change. The exchange shows how the knowledge shared between peoples strengthens the entire Amazon", he pointed out.
The exchange ended by reaffirming that answers to climate and territorial challenges already exist within the indigenous territories themselves. The exchange between the peoples strengthened collectively built experiences and showed that initiatives developed in Roraima today go beyond borders, becoming a reference for other peoples in the Amazon and the world.
Text: Charles Taurepang- ASCOM/CIR.
Revision: Helena Leocádio- ASCOM/CIR.
Photos: Gleidson Luan (Communicator Wakywaa Network - CIFCRSS), Felipe Macuxi (Wakywaa Raposa Region) and Addison Cristian (Wakywaa Raposa Region).