Médio Juruá: An Experience that Strengthens Organizations and Encourages the "New"

July, 2024 – The history of the Médio Juruá Territory, in the state of Amazonas, has been built through its constant efforts aimed at strengthening community organizations, encouraging the development of leaders in younger generations, and empowering women to occupy more space as participants and leaders. Local institutions and their partners promote training, capacity building, and dialogue, with a view toward keeping traditions alive, but also embracing new opportunities. 

Two recent activities carried out in the territory exemplify this work: the Political Training Program for Young Leaders, and the Meeting of Female Pirarucu Managers. Both were supported by USAID, working closely with government, private sector, and civil society partners to conserve Amazon biodiversity, strengthen local organizations, and promote sustainable economic activities.

The Political Training Program for Young Leaders – an initiative of the Médio Juruá Territory Forum (FTMJ) – attracted more than 100 participants from different communities. As one of the main governance bodies in the region, the FTMJ is a space where grassroots organizations identify priority areas of work for the region and agree on strategies to achieve their collective goals. It receives support from USAID and the Médio Juruá Territory Program, coordinated by SitawiFinance for Good; and it is run under a partnership involving the Partnership Platform for Amazon, Natura, and local organizations.

“The program highlights the importance of empowering youth and investing in programs that enable them to become agents of change in their communities. It is important that they understand the role and responsibilities of young leadership in the Amazon region, and how they can be catalysts for local civic and political engagement,” says Raimundo da Cunha, president of the Associação dos Moradores Extrativistas da Comunidade São Raimundo (São Raimundo Community Extractive Association) and a young leader himself. 

The Médio Juruá Territory is home to around 4,500 people in more than 60 riverine communities and Indigenous lands, along a stretch of the Juruá River covering an area of 9,500 square kilometers. It includes two conservation units: the Médio Juruá Extractive Reserve, and the Uacari Sustainable Development Reserve.

“One day, our [current] leaders will be tired, and will no longer be able to lead representative organizations. That is why training young people is so important, preparing them to be leaders in the future,” says Manoel da Cunha, manager of the Médio Juruá Extractive Reserve. Cunha is a reference in the region—not only due to his fight in the 1970s and 1980s to improve the living conditions of riverine communities and conserve biodiversity in the region, but because he is the son of Joaquim Xavier da Cunha, a rubber tapper who died in 2022 and was one of the first agents of change in their territory. 

During the program, in addition to exchanging experiences, participants engaged in several practical activities, including communication and public speaking workshops. One of the topics covered was the inclusion of women in community activities, which has gained momentum through the pirarucu production chain. Pirarucu is one of the largest freshwater fish in the world, and it is native to the Amazon. 

Empowering women –  Sustainable pirarucu management was one of the many activities developed in the Médio Juruá in recent years. In addition to conserving this species (currently at risk), management activities led to a major change in the lives of riverine and Indigenous communities, increasing people's food security and income. 

It was through this sustainable chain that women gained more space. To address these achievements and challenges in the future, the Meeting of Female Pirarucu Managers: Strengthening Identities and Networks brought together more than 30 people. The event was organized by the Pirarucu Collective, which receives support from USAID and the United States Forest Service (USFS).

It provided intense learning, experience sharing, and networking opportunities, and included discussions on a participatory methodology for “community empowerment”, adapted by USFS officer Ana Luiza Violato Espada for the context of women working in pirarucu management. This approach enabled the identification of the perceptions of those women working as pirarucu managers and the gender roles that, in practice, have been assigned to them in the chain. 

Read more about the events on Sitawi Finance for Good and Pirarucu Collective.