To arrive in the Aldeia Sagrada, we traveled in metal 5-passenger boats with outboard motors upriver for 8 hours. People had said that this part of the journey would be uncomfortable, but it was in fact relaxing. The Rio Gregorio is a narrow, winding Amazon-brown river, increasing in rapids the further into the jungle you go. The vegetation also gets more dense – massive trees that are part of natural reserves and protected Yawanawa territory line the banks of the river, with gaps for settlements and Yawanawa communities. Arriving into the Aldeia Sagrada, we were met with massive, totally impressive structures, built over the last several months to be able to host the V Indigenous Ayahuasca Conference for the first time in this location.

The Indigenous Medicine Conservation Fund has supported both the IV and V Indigenous Ayahuasca Conferences. The previous iteration was held at the Yorenka Tasorentsi Institute, also in Acre, and which is led by Benki Piyãko Asháninka. The V Conference was a joint effort between Yorenka Tasorentsi, who handled the logistics, and The Instituto Cultural Nixiwaká, housed in the Aldeia Sagrada and led by Nixiwaká Yawanawa. The conference grounds are a grouping of massive structures – a community dorm and eating area, a small cafe and store overlooking the river, a small welcome maloka, an office building, and a huge shebon-roof maloka where the conference itself took place. A Yawanawa community lies behind the event grounds, where community members have their homes in the jungle.

The structures themselves were designed in collaboration with Marcelo Rosembaum, one of Brazil’s leading architects, who volunteered his services. Several organizations supported the financing of the construction, but the largest income came from a project co-designed by AI-artist Refik Anadol and Chief Nixiwaká, where traditional Yawanawa designs were converted into NFTs and sold to art collectors in a very successful initiative. (Refik has been recently named to the TIME 100 list.)

The IMC Fund occupied a unique position at the conference, both as a financier/supporter but also as an multi-ethnic Indigenous participating organization. Our delegation included members from our Conservation Committee, our Co-Executive Director Miguel Evanjuanoy, technical support, representatives from partner organizations in the Ayahuasca bioculture, and delegates from the Lakota Nation in the North, representing the Peyote bioculture. 

“Discussions about the use, transportation, dissemination, and protection of knowledge, traditional wisdom, and genetic resources related to Ayahuasca have been intensifying since 2015” and the first Indigenous Ayahuasca Conference was held in 2017, as “a reaction to the academic movement that almost exclusively dominated the discussions. This movement did not provide recognized and valued space for the voices of indigenous spiritual leaders, relegating them to mere minutes of participation without adequate space to share their knowledge, reflections, and contributions at events. Despite the limited effective participation of indigenous peoples in these events, they underscored the need for deeper reflections on ways to protect traditional knowledge related to this medicine, especially considering the indigenous perspective and leadership.” The Conference as a movement was initiated by Benki Piyãko, Biraci Nixiwaka Yawanawa, and Joel Dëvakï Puyanawa, and a full history is available on the Indigenous Ayahuasca Conference website.

Opening Panel at the V Indigenous Ayahuasca Conference

This V iteration of the conference brought five key discussions to the table:

1. PANEL 1 - INDIGENOUS WOMEN: SPIRITUAL LEADERS AND GUARDIANS OF LIFE

2. PANEL 2 - TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE, GENETIC HERITAGE, AND BENEFIT SHARING 

3. PANEL 3 - TRANSPORTATION, USE, AND REGULATION OF TRADITIONAL MEDICINES OUTSIDE COMMUNITIES

4. PANEL 4 - COUNCIL OF INDIGENOUS SPIRITUAL LEADERS

5. PANEL 5 - THE USE OF AYAHUASCA AND OTHER INDIGENOUS MEDICINES FOR THE TREATMENT OF CHEMICAL ADDICTION 

Discussions were limited to Indigenous participation only, except in rare cases where a moderator or facilitator was invited to contribute their perspective. Each discussion was opened by a panel of presenters who addressed the topics, then opened to participation by the Indigenous members of the audience, ensuring that everyone who had something to share was included in the conversation. Considering that the Indigenous Ayahuasca Conference was formed in part as a reaction to the limited format of Western-run conferences, the inclusive style of this way of addressing key topics was structurally important. If there were still names on the list wishing to contribute to a particular topic, but the day’s time had run out, the following day was opened by continuing and completing the previous topic. Some panels needed to be pushed back to accommodate all contributions, but it worked.

The nighttimes were rich in cultural programming. The first night, before the opening of the debate part of the conference, attendees were invited to join in a collective Ayahuasca ceremony. The following night, an Indigenous-only space was opened for the CEREMONY OF THE WORD with Doéthiro Tukano. Following nights included projection of films and the continuation of the ceremony of the word. The final night saw a closing ritual with Ayahuasca. 

The discussion side of the conference was opened by the hosts and organizers, including representatives of the Instituto Nixiwaka by Chief Nixiwaka Yawanawa and his wife Putanny Yawanawa, the Yorenka Tasorentsi Institute by Benki Ashaninka, the Indigenous Peoples Organization of the Juruá River (OPIRJ) by Francisco Piyãko, The Yawanawa Cultural Association (ASCY) by Tashkã Yawanawa and the Indigenous Medicine Conservation Fund (IMC Fund) by our Co-Executive Director Miguel Evanjuanoy Chindoy, and the representative of the Committees, Puwe Puyanawa. It was an honor to be included in the opening ceremony alongside the visionary leaders at the heart of the conference.

In the afternoon, Txukü Puyanawa shared a history of the Indigenous Ayahuasca Conference, and the first panel on women and their place as spiritual leaders and guardians of life was held. The panel included presentations by Putanny Yawanawa, Elisa Vargas (Shipibo), Rozalia Zavala (Maya K’iche), Pukeshaya Shanenawa, Vari Puyanawa, Júlia Meni Yawanawa, Laura Soriano Yawanawa and was moderated by Shãtsi Ashaninka.

Day two commenced with the completion of the women’s panel, then entered into the very important discussion around Indigenous rights and benefit sharing, with a panel that included Yskukua Yawanawa, Daiara Tukano, and Yuria Celidwen (Nahua and Maya), moderated by Adana Kambeba and including Maíra Dias and Daniel Vila Nova.

Women's panel at the V Indigenous Ayahuasca Conference

The third panel on transportation and use of medicine outside of Indigenous communities had Benki Ashaninka, Armando Loizaga, Pazzi Nixiwaka Yawanawa, Tashkã Yawanawa, Walter Lopez Pashin Nima (Shipibo Konibo - ASOMASHK), moderated by Claude Guislain and with collaboration from Ben Meeus. The fourth panel took up the discussion of a Council of Indigenous Spiritual Leaders, which notably received much more agreement than in previous conferences. This panel was led by Nixiwaka Yawanawa, Puwe Puyanawa, Benki Ashaninka, and Shawãkaya Shawãdawa. The final panel on the use of Ayahuasca for the treatment of chemical addiction saw Yoo’masali Sewa, our Co-Executive Director Miguel Evanjuanoy, Xiti Nukini, Adana Kambeba, Tuim Nova take the lead on the conversation, mediated by Nedina Yawanawa.

The final day of the conference was used for the drafting of the official letter, a collective process to ensure that all points over the previous days were included in the document. Projected in Portuguese and with simultaneous interpretation to English and Spanish, participants were included in the drafting of the letter.

The declaration, which is an important result of the almost week-long conference, has been published and can be found here (in English; Portuguese and Spanish versions are also available on the website), and we’ve included photo versions of the declaration for easy reference. Note that while we support the right of Indigenous peoples and organizations to declare their collective stances, this document in its entirety does not necessarily reflect the stance of the IMC Fund itself.

The Indigenous Ayahuasca Conference is an impressive panamerican movement. While centered in Brazil and with participation dominated by representatives of the tribes and organizations from Acre, there is a growing constituent of international Indigenous representatives that add invaluable insight to the conversation. 

Sandor Iron Rope (Lakota) and Pablo Evanjuanoy Chindoy

One of the big questions that was circulating was about who this conference is really serving, and what lasting benefits result for Indigenous Ayahuasca communities and other Indigenous medicine peoples, beyond the spectacular gathering?

Indigenous spaces are an important part of information exchange, and many learnings were shared. But in order for there to be lasting benefit, there needs to be collaboration between western stakeholders and Indigenous leaders. Westerners must listen to the messages being generated about the proper use of their medicine. 

A notable visit by the Acre regional governor, who flew in by helicopter to visit the conference, highlighted this necessary exchange. The governor made a public commitment to the Indigenous peoples of Acre, to continue working to protect their rights and implement strategies for mutual benefit. But words are not enough.

It is an obvious impulse to want to join the movement, to travel deep into the jungle and participate in these Indigenous spaces, to want to understand what is happening and see it with one’s own eyes. But westerners who desire to support these movements must deeply reflect on what it is they are contributing with their presence, and if there are other ways they can support these initiatives without interrupting delicate processes.

Several funders who contributed to the conference were present, and warmly received by their grateful hosts. The westerners at the conference seemed to be respectful, and many contributed to the technical and logistical pieces that helped the smooth flow of the event. They were the minority, and in future conferences it should stay that way: give space to the conversations and processes, support where necessary and requested, and upon completion, look for ways that are mutually inspiring to contribute to the long-term benefit of Indigenous communities, based on those communities’ own recommendations.

The Indigenous Medicine Conservation Fund is proud to be a key partner of the Indigenous Ayahuasca Conference, along with six other Indigenous organizations working for the biocultural conservation of their sacred medicine practices, territories and cultures. A donation to the IMC Fund helps ensure that community-based processes can take place in their own way and time, ensuring healthy collaboration for the benefit of society as a whole.

We are grateful for the experience at the V Indigenous Ayahuasca Conference, and send our huge congratulations to all of the very special people who helped make it possible.