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In Pictures: Indigenous women guard against illegal mining in Ecuador

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Adri Salido
Elsa Cerda (with spear) leads Yuturi Warmi, a group of Indigenous women who guard against illegal mining in the community of Serena in the Ecuadorian Amazon.
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  • By Adri Salido Contributor

| Serena, Ecuador

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.

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Indigenous peoples have long been stewards of their land. In the Ecuadorian Amazon, a group of women has mobilized to safeguard waterways and 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.

Expand this story to see the full photo essay.

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.

Adri Salido
A man mines gold illegally on the river bank, near Serena. The precarious financial situation in which many people live has driven them to extract gold illegally to bring in money to help their families.
Adri Salido
A man holds a mobile phone with a photo of the Yutzupino River as it once was, juxtaposed with how it looks today. Mining companies have destroyed the ecosystem of the Yutzupino, which is one of the tributaries of the Amazon River.
Adri Salido
Ms. Cerda talks to another member of Yuturi Warmi via walkie-talkie as part of the group’s surveillance.
Adri Salido
Traditional accessories made by Yuturi Warmi help finance the fight against illegal mining.
Adri Salido
Members of Yuturi Warmi enjoy a relaxed moment together. They meet daily to discuss issues that affect the community. The women also maintain their ancestral culture through workshops in which grandmothers, mothers, and daughters meet.
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