In Ecuador’s Amazon, Indigenous women guard against illegal mining

For thousands of years, Indigenous peoples in the Ecuadorian Amazon have been stewards of one of the most diverse ecosystems on the planet. So when a group of Indigenous women in Serena watched illegal mines spring up, it sprang into action.

Calling itself Yuturi Warmi, which refers in the Kichwa language to a type of ant that will attack when an enemy enters its territory, the group formed in 2020. It joined with other Ecuadorian and international organizations to urge the government to enforce laws against illegal extraction that pollutes waterways and destroys critical habitat.

But officials have not acted, according to Yuturi Warmi. So the women have worked themselves to ensure that no illegal mining takes place in their community. They patrol the riverbank, conduct canoe inspections, and maintain constant surveillance. Thus far, they have kept intruders out of Serena. 

The situation is different upstream, in Yutzupino, where illegal extraction has destroyed the basin of the Jatunyacu River, a tributary of the Amazon River.

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The Indigenous peoples who live around the Napo and Jatunyacu rivers in the Ecuadorian Amazon have served as stewards of one of the planet’s most diverse ecosystems for thousands of years. So it was with dismay that they watched both legal and illegal gold mines spring up, polluting waterways and destroying critical habitat. 

Taking the protection of their land into their own hands, a group of Indigenous women in Serena formed Yuturi Warmi to guard against illegal mining operations. In the Kichwa language, Yuturi Warmi refers to a type of ant (Paraponera clavata) that will attack when an enemy enters its territory.

The group, which formed in 2020, joined with other Ecuadorian and international organizations to urge the government to enforce laws against illegal extraction and to restore habitat.

But officials have not acted, according to Yuturi Warmi. Since then, the group has worked to ensure that no illegal mining takes place in its community. It patrols the riverbank, conducts canoe inspections, and maintains constant surveillance.

So far, it has kept intruders out of Serena. 

The situation is far different upstream, in Yutzupino, where illegal extraction has destroyed the basin of the Jatunyacu River, a tributary of the Amazon River.