For centuries, Munduruku communities have inhabited the Madeira-Tapajós region of central Brazil. However, for more than 200 years, they have been drastically impacted by colonial expansion, missionaries, harmful policies, infrastructure projects, and rubber and mining extraction industries, which have destroyed much of Mundurukânia—the vast territory of the Munduruku people prior to colonization. Women-led Indigenous movements have been vital in defending these territories.

Grassroots Action Through Women-Led Indigenous Movements

Founded in 2018 by 280 Indigenous women at the First Munduruku Women's Assembly, our movement partner Associação das Mulheres Munduruku Wakoborun was the heart of a women-led Indigenous movement formed to protect women and their territory from large-scale projects such as the construction of dams and railways, mining, and forest concessions, as well as invasion by illegal loggers, increase the participation of women in their peoples’ decision-making, and help women and Munduruku communities at large to generate income from their traditional work.

The journey to reach Associação Wakoborun's headquarters in the upper Tapajós was intense. After three days of travel by plane, truck, and boat, our Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean, Sandra Silva, made it to Mundurukânia in the Amazon to learn firsthand about this women-led Indigenous movement.

“It was the first time they were receiving a funder into their sacred space,” she explained. “I felt very privileged and honored to be welcomed like that. Only a photojournalist had gone in the past couple of years to document their work. This is because it is physically hard to get to their geographic location. Usually, they travel all the way to meet other people. The fact that I was undertaking a three-day trip to get to them was something they really appreciated.”

Ground Zero for Deforestation

In April 2020, Munduruku territory in the state of Pará was ranked as the most deforested Indigenous land in Brazil, demonstrating the importance of women-led Indigenous movements defending this land.

There are currently 43 hydroelectric projects planned for the free-flowing Tapajós River, one of the largest tributaries of the Amazon River. Most are on hold, thanks to the organizing by territory defenders like the Munduruku women, underscoring the importance of women-led Indigenous movements in preserving land and culture. Land invasions, illegal deforestation, and fires have increased as part of the effort to clear the land for agribusiness and the many development projects planned in the region. These activities escalated during the presidency of Jair Bolsonaro, who encouraged illegal exploitation and mining on Indigenous lands during his tenure.

Read the full article about supporting women-led Indigenous movements by Sandra Silva at Thousand Currents.