Kapeatindi: a Guaraní cultural reference in Bolivia

In Bolivia, there are still some communities of native peoples who maintain their worldview of harmonious life with nature, their cultural practices being framed since time immemorial in conserving their Land, their Territory, their Ivi Maraei, as they call it in the language of the Guaraní Culture.

In Kapeatindi, a community of Guarani-Isoseño origin neighboring the Kaa-Iya del Gran Chaco National Park, the In Bolivia's largest protected area, an innovative pilot project was implemented that successfully rekindled the traditional mythical sense of ancestral worldview within local families. The initiative was carried out by three NGOs, including the Savia Association –Member of the IUCN y TICCA– was one of them, with actions aimed at cultural strengthening and female empowerment.

The community serves as an example and benchmark for the practice and preservation of its customs. Their response to the implementation of this project, which fostered social, economic, and environmental resilience, demonstrates their commitment to their Yandereko, a concept rooted in their close relationship with the land and the sustainable use of its resources. Among the community's achievements is the empowerment of the women, who are now more self-assured, raising their voices and contributing significantly to their families' economies by assisting with cultivation and the production of traditional goods such as weaving, ñetira shampoo, and cupesí flour, among others.

In this context, for the Evaluation Phase of said Project called “Community strengthening and revaluation of traditional knowledge for the conservation and sustainable management of natural resources in Kapeatindi”, completed between the end of 2018 and the beginning of 2020. In the space, the women leaders demonstrated confidence in expressing their ideas, benefits and motivation to continue promoting local livelihoods linked to conservation through the voice of the indigenous woman demanding the right to protect her territory.

The project fostered capacity building, reflection, and debate on the need to promote the transmission of local customs and traditions and sustainable alternatives to prevent the loss of culture over time, activating preventative measures to keep the Isoseño worldview alive. It also recognized the importance of disseminating the value of the Isoseño Territory and the Kaa-Iya among adults, youth, and children, in coordination with staff from the Protected Area.

The cultural part of the project, developed by the Savia Association, was based on the Strengthening ancestral knowledge together with the community, Among its actions were the “1st Cultural, Environmental and Craft Fair”, Environmental Education in Schools, the implementation of «Arete Guasu -Fiesta Grande-”, the assessment of traditional community actions such as the practice of “Motiro” and the Training in Production and Empowerment of women, from which emerged cultural bulletins and videos that showed the Isoseña Identity, as well as research documentation, including the ISOSO Diagnosis on production, food, migration, territory and worldview of the local Culture.

The project was co-financed by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) with synergy of actions with the Green Livelihoods Alliance (GLA/IUCN) and ECCOS, and the participation of the authorities, local families, the support of park rangers and technicians from the Kaa-Iya Protected Area of the Gran Chaco.

Watch video: GUARANÍ-ISOSeño CULTURE