The Killing of Pataxó Spiritual Leader and Activist Exposes Violence of the Law Against Indigenous Peoples in Bahia, Brazil

Being Indigenous is dangerous. Regardless of the roles the Indigenous community may play in society—decolonizing the State by transforming unjust laws into just policies, defending the environment, protecting biodiversity, or advocating for self-determination, human, and nature rights—all of these roles have brought violence, harassment, and death to thousands of Indigenous activists and leaders in Brazil. Read more. Em português.

CERD Raises Concerns About Indigenous Rights Violations of Ayllu Acre Antequera Communities in Bolivia

In October 2023, Cultural Survival and Qhana Pukara Kurmi, an association of Indigenous communities of the department of Oruro, Bolivia, submitted an alternative report to the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. Read more. En español. 

100 Days of Indigenous Mobilization in Guatemala Demonstrate Half a Century of Indigenous Resistance

Guatemala has a population of 18 or 19 million inhabitants, mostly Indigenous, although the last census reported the population at 40 percent. The Indigenous population is made up of four nations known as the Maya, Xinka, Garifuna, and Ladino Peoples. Read more.  En español. 

Colla Community of Copiapó and Cultural Survival Submit Report on the State of Indigenous Rights in Chile for the UN Universal Periodic Review

Chile is the only country in South America that does not recognize Indigenous Peoples in its constitution, so it should not be a surprise that it has failed to adequately align its national legislation with international standards for the protection of their rights. One of its most evident failures has been the absence of respect for the right to Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) of Indigenous Peoples living in lithium mining and exploration areas. Read more.

The Fight to Close First Quantum Minerals Canadian Mine in Panama

Before narrating the latest events on the anti-mining struggle, it is relevant to clarify that we are not a mining country, despite the fact that during the time of the colony and the Spanish subjugation, some gold mines were established with the same logic of extractivist dispossession of a foreign power. Read more. En español. 

The Earth Is in the Hands of the Fossil Fuel Industry: COP28 Fails to Deliver Urgent Action on Phasing Out Fossil Fuels

It’s been almost 30 years since the first UN Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of the Parties (UNFCCC COP) in 1995, yet greenhouse gas emissions have continued to rise every year. Fossil fuels are poisoning everything around us. There is a reason why Mother Earth has kept these elements trapped within her depths. At UNFCCC COP28, held November 30–December 12, 2023, in Dubai, the world spoke in one voice, calling for an end to fossil fuels.  Read more. 

Russia Receives Recommendations on Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Made by Cultural Survival and Partners during its Universal Periodic Review 

In April 2023, Cultural Survival submitted a joint stakeholder report with partner organizations IWGIA, Society for Threatened Peoples (STP), and International Committee of Indigenous Peoples of Russia (ICIPR) on the state of Indigenous Peoples’ rights in the Russian Federation for the 44th Universal Periodic Review. Read more. 

Media Landscape in the Global South: The Good, Bad and Fragmented 

The world is a community of communities, a network of networks. I recently had the privilege of attending Splice BETA, a media festival currently in its 4th year, which was recently held in Chiang Mai, Thailand which has become a 150+ organization strong community centered on media practitioners, media owners, funders, publishers, and industry experts that come together annually to talk shop and share the latest industry news and views. Read more. 

Restoring Relationships with Lands and Returning Stewardship to Indigenous Hands

I remember growing up in Berkeley, every year when October rolled around we would celebrate Columbus Day—we even had a Columbus elementary school. It was not at all uncommon; it was hard to find a city that didn't have some marker of Christopher Columbus on its streets or institutions. But in 1992, on the 500th anniversary of Columbus landing in Borinquen (Puerto Rico), the “People’s Republic of Berkeley,” as it is sometimes facetiously known, moved to change Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples Day: the first in the nation to do so...Read more

The Importance of Indigenous Oral Traditional Storytelling: Part 1

When I was young, I remember my eldest brother telling me stories that felt lived in. They were experiences, lessons, entertainment, and they were about our culture. When I think of oral traditional storytelling, it’s his voice that plays in my head. For some, maybe it’s their mother or their father, a friend who could make up stories easily, or perhaps that silly uncle who only came around when you least expected it....Read more 

Indigenous Youth Fellow Spotlight:

What Are Our Youth Fellows Up To?

As we begin a new year cycle, we would like to honor the work of Indigenous youth around the globe who have dedicated their efforts and commitments to implementing collective action by bringing forward opportunities for growth, empowerment, and aspiration in their communities.  Read more.  

Indigenous Community Media Fund Grant Partner Spotlight:

Nigerian Radio Project Bridges the Gap Between Doctors and Farmers on Vaccines

In Nigeria, many farmers didn't trust vaccines for COVID-19, making it hard to fight the virus. With financial support from Cultural Survival’s Indigenous Community Media Fund, Paramount 94.5 FM Abeokuta in Nigeria, undertook Project New Hope, which used radio broadcasts to teach about vaccines in a way that was culturally relevant in the Yoruba language. Read more. 

Keepers of the Earth Fund Grant Partner Spotlight:

Returning to Land, Returning to Holistic Indigenous Lifeways

The story of the Maskoke Peoples is, as that of all Indigenous Peoples of Turtle Island, a story of dispossession, cultural assimilation, and treaty violations. Forced out of their homelands by government-imposed removal policies, Maskoke People were displaced from their territories in 1836.  Read more.  

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