The Living Forest: Anthropology and Education in the Kichwa Community of Sarayaku

The 'Living Forest' project addresses the need of the Kichwa community of Sarayaku to develop an educational model that reclaims their ancestral knowledge and animistic worldview. Historically, the formal education system has acted as a mechanism of acculturation, often ignoring traditional learning methods that occur within the tropical rainforest through interactions with both human and non-human beings. Using an intercultural ethnographic methodology, the research team will collaborate with the community to document how knowledge is constructed in daily life. The study involves in-depth interviews with yachaks, teachers, parents, and community leaders, alongside participant observation to systematize local wisdom. The expected impact is twofold: first, to provide theoretical and practical inputs for the design of Sarayaku's own educational model, thereby strengthening their cultural autonomy; and second, to contribute to the contemporary anthropological debate on the 'Ontological Turn,' challenging the nature-culture dichotomy and promoting a deeper understanding of Amazonian societies.<br/><br/><b>Goal</b>: <br/>Reflect on the processes of knowledge acquisition and construction within the Kichwa people of Sarayaku. The project aims to identify how traditional knowledge is transmitted and its relationship with the Amazonian environment to support the design of a community-specific educational model.<br/><br/><b>Research lines</b>: <br/>Anthropological studies