Sachawaysa, Ecuador is in a beautiful hilly location, where the Amazon forest meets the foothills of the Andes at 900 meters elevation. The community has self-organized to work honestly, proactively, and transparently to regenerate Kichwa culture, and forests, which were almost destroyed by the Spanish settlement in the region which brought hostile attitudes and actions towards Kichwa people, their customs and regional rainforests.
Sacha Kuyrana Maltakuna – Young Kichwa Defenders of the Forest plan to buy a one hectare property, build a simple office with local materials, and map, design, and plant an ancestral home garden with dozens of fruit, nut, palm, medicinal, and hardwoods, including traditional species which help to improve soils, and short cycle plants and fungi, such as edible mushrooms collected from the forest. They will develop an online Kichwa vegetarian recipe book, full of traditional foods and recipes, to share with young people in the region.
Young people will organise and participate in projects, and will ask the grandparents (elders) for advice on values, on projects and how to successfully extend their work to benefit surrounding communities.
