The Guardians of the Forest, Amazonian Army.

The Guardians of The Forest, Amazonian Army.

Amazon tribes suffer as deforestation and climate change ravage their home. The group Guajajara battle illegal logging and protect the people of the forest.

Guardians assemble before heading out to investigate a report of an illegal marijuana farm

The Indigenous people of the Amazon are feeling the effects of climate change as the Amazon rainforest, also known as the ̈lungs of the Earth ̈ are being ravaged by deforestation. As the Brazillian government continues to be led by corruption and greed, the rainforest and its inhabitants pay the price. 

Who are the Amazonian Tribes?

Within the vast rainforest there lives approximately 400 Indigenous tribes. Some of which have been disconnected, and have lived in seclusion away from the modern outside world. Most of these tribes have only known the rain forest, and know the ins and out and how it works better than any outsider. 

A more well known tribe of the Amazon, are called “The Guardians of The Forest”, a group of 120 Guajajara Indigenous members. The group protects the forest by fighting illegal logging; the group also protects the uncontacted tribe Awá Guajá, the most at-risk tribe of the Amazon, and other targeted Indigenous tribes.

Get to Know Them

The Guajajara are the most prominent Indigenous group in Brazil, with an estimated population at 13,100. In 1901 the Guajajara fought Capuchin missionaries in what was known as the “war against the Indians” which was the last in Brazil. The chief at the time, Cauiré Imana, united many villages to expel all white people from the region. 

As Brazil has become the deadliest country in the world for land defenders such as the Guajajara, with more than 140 people killed since 2015. Maranhão, the living place for the Guajajara tribe has the most attacks on Indigenous people than any other place, meaning the Guajajara members risk their lives everyday fighting for the forest. As they are brutally targeted by corrupt leaders and other parties, who seek to eliminate the members and continue to destroy the 

Amazons resources.

Claudio da Silva and the Guajajara Guardians of the Forest ride up the Caru River to investigate a report of illegal cutting on Guajajara land

Indigenous Protecting the Land, Fights Climate Change

You may be asking yourself, “but how much of an impact does a small group really have? Is it worth the sacrifices and risks?”, which is a reasonable question; according to World Resources Institute, “Indigenous lands generate billions and sometimes trillions of dollars’ worth of benefits in the form of carbon sequestration, reduced pollution, clean water and more”, which is more valuable than what most governments have done. 

These secured Indigenous Lands are economically smart and when the conversation comes to money, will save millions of dollars in reduced Co2 emissions, especially when groups such as the Guajajara are contributing towards protecting these lands from illegal logging.

Cost Effective

Carbon mitigation through securing Indigenous land in Brazil, Bolivia, and Columbia are estimated at $2.04 to $11.88 / tonne of CO2 essimision. This is significantly lower than the average cost, through carbon capture and storage of fossil fuels the price weighs in at about $58 / tonne of coal fired power plants. 

Guajajara, Their Contribution

Many activists say that groups such as the Guajajara are the last hope when it comes to fighting climate change and rapid deforestation. "The colonization period was marked by deaths, murders, and extermination, and this hasn't stopped. It requires our constant resistance” says Sonia Guajajara, the head of Articulation of Indigenous People. Illegal logging and land clearing continues to be the highest reason for deforestation in tropical forests, but the Guajajara and others like them continue to push back. The Brazillian government has continued to underfund all areas of protection for Indigenous lands, and to push for open existing Indigenous territories for agribusiness and mining, even though statistics show protected Indigenous lands continue to have extremely low rates of deforestation. The Guajajara are one of the only groups of people who are actively fighting for our world, and its main source of life - the trees.

 "Sometimes, when we see the trees cut down, we feel rage," da Silva says. "But we also have a heart, so sometimes we pity the outsiders, too. They wrecked what they had and now they want to wreck what we have. This is why we keep fighting, so that this doesn't happen”.

• “The Guardians of the Forest” by The Week

Call To Action

What are some ways you may be able to help? There are vast ways to help the Amazon and its inhabitants. Here are some tips:

• Cut beef out of your diet
• Use “Ecosia” as your search engine - plants trees as you search the web!
• Make noise - by expressing you passion about deforestation on social media, by educating peers and family, you will spread the information and make noise to be heard
• Donate to non-profit charities, or charities that plant trees for every dollar spent
• Do research - by educating yourself on harmful products/learning easy changes to everyday life will add up

The Guajajara are doing amazing work everyday, and with the help of the rest of the world, will greatly contribute to fighting climate change and deforestation. No one said saving the world will be easy, and as the rich and people in power sit back and do little to nothing, the rest of us can all pitch in to save our planet. 

For some Non-Profit organizations, take a look at this list:

• Amazon Watch: fights the destruction of the Amazon, and supports Indgienous rights.
• Amazon Conservation Team: works hand-in-hand with Indigenous leaders to protect the Amazon.
• Amazon Conservation Association: has trained hundreds of conservationists, and has planted over 275,000 trees to date.

Together we can save the planet, I hope this blog has been informative and useful in explaining the Guajajara and how the Indigenous are protecting the land and fighting climate change and deforestation. Thank you for reading!