When the Puyanawa people invited us to share their story, we embarked on three days of sleepless misconnecting flights and an overnight jungle drive - to arrive in time for a vibrant explosion of dance, song, and hugs from the tribe’s fearsomely dashing chiefs.

Puwe Puyanawa, the Spiritual Chief began, “Welcome! Join our mission to return to and protect our Sacred Forests. Nature itself has called you, not just these bodies” he gestured to the celebrating group. “Nature is father, Nature is mother, Nature is who will help us.” Vari Puyanawa, Spiritual Mother, shared libations and blessings. We were soon enthralled dancing together and learning from their wisdom.

Until the turn of the 20th Century, the Puyanawa lived fully immersed in nature, near the headwaters of the lower Moa River. Then they were hunted and decimated by people who wanted to steal their land. They evaded capture for over ten years, then their people were massacred, enslaved, and their lands stolen for rubber extraction. It was not until 1950 that they were freed. Today, the grandson of the person who took the land remains the legal owner of their land.

“We were forbidden to speak our language or practice our culture. We didn’t even know where our lands were. In a dream, the location was revealed, and when we journeyed to the place we saw in the dream, we found artifacts from our temples buried there,” explained Puwe.

“Now we are protecting and regenerating our culture, and the sacred forests,” he continued. “The sacred forest is the heart of the world. Not just for the Puyanawa tribe, but for all of humanity.”

Puwe and Lucas Puyanawa took us on a journey deep into their Sacred Forests. We were overwhelmed by their beauty, feeling both a deep harmony and sense of home under threat, flowing through the ceremony we had shared. Puwe explained, “Everything is connected. The water levels are much lower than usual, disruptions from climate change are leading to fish not spawning, with potentially disastrous ecological consequences.” Further along, we were all shocked and devastated to find forests had been cut and burned. Smoke still rose from the grisly remains of giants of the forest. Fortunately, the great majority of the Sacred Forest remains intact.

“If we don’t act now, the tide of devastation will take over all,” Lucas warned. The Puyanawa tribe aims to buy back 10,000 hectares of their ancestral lands.

“If we don’t act now, the tide of devastation will take over all,” Lucas warned. The Puyanawa tribe aims to buy back 10,000 hectares of their ancestral lands, with the help of the nonprofit Instituto Fronteiras and Earthshot Labs. “What we hope to achieve with this project is to restore the land that was taken away from the tribe over a hundred years ago, and actually return it to bring social justice to the tribe. The tribe has suffered a lot and has come a long way to be where they are today,” explained Lars Berggren, Brazil Lead for Earthshot. “We hope to do that by bringing finances from the carbon market to fund this project.”

At the end of our journey, the tribe called a meeting with the entire community to confirm their agreement to proceed with Earthshot Labs and Instituto Fronteiras, to make this project happen. Vari said, “You are family. Come back, stay with us for 6 months, we will heal you. Learn from Nature, share with the world.”

We promised to honor our brilliant Puyanawa family and their important work. We are humbled by the responsibility they shared, to bring their story to help complete this project. To inspire uniting to protect our global ecological heritage and Indigenous families.