Making an impact in Ecuador.
Providing tools and materials to enable the Waorani to return to self-sufficiency without sacrificing bio-diverse lands.
The Waorani people of the Ecuadorian Amazon have long been locked in a battle to sustain their way of life and protect their home against illegal miners, loggers, and drug smugglers who infringe on their lands and exploit their bio-diverse forests.
Across the vast Ecuadorian rainforest, the Waorani are custodians of approximately 2.5 million acres of land. Roughly 50 small, remote communities reside deep in the jungle and center their lives around the rich, natural landscape.
The seclusion of their communities makes logistics for the provision of assistance difficult, but the preservation of an entire culture and the land that breathes life into our planet is at stake.
It is challenging for the Waorani to foresee a future in which they can live harmoniously with their lands in peace and attain a higher quality of life, but their unique cultural beliefs command that they live in the present and inspire them to take steps towards charting their own course. Success for the Waorani people means not only surviving, but thriving.
Waorani women have banded together to create social enterprises - among them chocolate production and handicrafts - and plow the profits back into their communities, elevating their standard of living. It is a noble undertaking and one that WWB is proud to support.
We work directly with Waorani community leaders to provide schools with educational materials, skills-based training, sanitary materials, sports equipment, and mental health support, among other projects, enabling Waorani youth to be the leaders of tomorrow.
