Women Defenders of the Colombian Amazon

Colombia is among the most dangerous countries for environmental defenders. Yet here, women stand as frontline defenders of both nature and culture. Mongabay is documenting the women protecting forests, rivers and ancestral territories by strengthening traditional governance and reviving ancestral stewardship while confronting coca traffickers and illegal miners. In this Special Issue, meet the women uniquely shaping new paths for Amazon conservation and community resilience.

Putumayo’s women guardians defend land and culture amid Colombia’s deforestation

Women in Putumayo turn to fish farming and away from the coca industry

Etelvina Ramos: From coca farmer to opponent of the illegal crop

Alis Ramírez: A defender of the Colombian Amazon now living as a refugee in New Zealand

Maydany Salcedo: the environmental defender who catches the ire of armed groups

Soraida Chindoy: the Indigenous guardian defending the sacred Putumayo mountains

Indigenous women in Colombia protect rich Amazonian wetland from overfishing

Nazareth Cabrera fights for Colombia’s Indigenous Uitoto with the strength of her words

In the Colombian Amazon, a leader trains her people to save the forest

All Specials

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