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It is with deep sadness that we announce the death of José de los Santos Sauna Limaco, fourth Cabildo of the Organización Gondawindúa Tayrona, which acts for indigenous rights in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta and represents Kogi interests in particular before the Colombian state.
Santos Sauna contracted COVID 19 in August and died within a few days of being admitted to hospital in Santa Marta on 6th August 2020. He was only 44. Following detailed consultation with his wife, extended family and officials at the highest level of administration in Magdalena, transport was granted for the protected body to be flown back to the Sierra so that the Kogi can observe traditional funeral rites in the place of his birth.
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It is with deep sadness that we announce the death of José de los Santos Sauna Limaco, fourth Cabildo of the Organización Gondawindúa Tayrona, which acts for indigenous rights in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta and represents Kogi interests in particular before the Colombian state.
Santos Sauna contracted COVID 19 in August and died within a few days of being admitted to hospital in Santa Marta on 6th August 2020. He was only 44. Following detailed consultation with his wife, extended family and officials at the highest level of administration in Magdalena, transport was granted for the protected body to be flown back to the Sierra so that the Kogi can observe traditional funeral rites in the place of his birth.
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The screening of Aluna at the Medicine Festival and the zoom session which followed with Alan Ereira and Mama Senchina boosted our Food appeal so successfully it enabled us to give very generously to the Kogi trapped in their mountain retreat. It has now also been confirmed that the Colombian government has stepped in to provide support to its indigenous communities so we are pausing our appeal for the time being until we know whether further help is required so a very big thank you to all of you who donated so generously.
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Thank you so much to all of you who have been donating generously to the Trust over the last few weeks. We hope you are all well and gradually emerging after lockdown into what they are now calling the ‘ new normal’ which seems to mean a gradual resumption of a limited range of activities at whatever recommended distance your country advises. It has been a terrible period in world history but let's hope countries can continue to slowly open up again with a better understanding of how precious our natural resources are.
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Thank you so much to all of you who have been donating generously to the Trust over the last few weeks. We hope you are all well and gradually emerging after lockdown into what they are now calling the ‘ new normal’ which seems to mean a gradual resumption of a limited range of activities at whatever recommended distance your country advises. It has been a terrible period in world history but let's hope countries can continue to slowly open up again with a better understanding of how precious our natural resources are.
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The Kogi need your help.
To protect themselves from the COVID-19 pandemic, the entire Kogi People have isolated themselves in the mountains of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta for three months initially, and closed it off to outsiders. They do not descend, and even travel between Kogi villages has been restricted by their authorities to prevent any contagion. As a result, the variety and amount of foods that they can grow and acquire has been drastically reduced, a situation exacerbated by raging wildfires in March that affected many parts of the Sierra, and because govermental assistance has been limited.
Read moreUpdate on the Construction work on the Black line.
We are pleased to report that since drawing this violation of indigenous rights to the attention of the authorities, action has now been taken to suspend the construction work taking place as the builder was found not to have an appropriate licence. So this is great news and means that government protection for the Kogis ancestral lands is actually working! Thanks is due to support from the German Ambassador in Colombia, half a million protests on social media and pressure from various prominent journalists and organisations like our own working together to support the OGT. So well done everyone - we must keep upor the good work!
For further information you can read the full update below.
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Update on the Construction work on the Black line.
We are pleased to report that since drawing this violation of indigenous rights to the attention of the authorities, action has now been taken to suspend the construction work taking place as the builder was found not to have an appropriate licence. So this is great news and means that government protection for the Kogis ancestral lands is actually working! Thanks is due to support from the German Ambassador in Colombia, half a million protests on social media and pressure from various prominent journalists and organisations like our own working together to support the OGT. So well done everyone - we must keep upor the good work!
For further information you can read the full update below.
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Thanks to everyone who helped us fund a vital meeting in the Sierra with the Kogi. This was called to agree an alliance to help ensure the defence and protection of the Kogi in the Sierra. Representatives of many of the organisations supporting the Kogi attended.
Alan has written a full report of the meeting.
Read moreAlan Ereira was invited to attend a conference with UNESCO which was designed to create a sustainable framework that would shape global policy making and education. the conference ended with agreement to build a consortium to create a programme of learning that would integrate views on sustainability from unusual partners. With a working group created to look at sample sites. This was something which Alan took to discuss with the Kogi when Trustees met with them in the Sierra.
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Alan Ereira was invited to attend a conference with UNESCO which was designed to create a sustainable framework that would shape global policy making and education. the conference ended with agreement to build a consortium to create a programme of learning that would integrate views on sustainability from unusual partners. With a working group created to look at sample sites. This was something which Alan took to discuss with the Kogi when Trustees met with them in the Sierra.
Read moreThe mission of the Trust is to magnify the Kogis’ voice, to help them defend their culture and its territorial integrity and to learn from them how to better protect the planet which we all share.
The Kogi are descendants of the Tairona and are the last surviving civilization from the world of the Inca and Aztec.
They are an indigenous people who consider themselves to be the guardians of the earth and are worried by our attempts to destroy it.
The mountain - in Colombia - is their home, it is quite literally a microcosmos, a mirror of the planet on which every ecological zone is represented. The impact of the modern world is affecting their environment and from their vantage point on the mountain they can see how this is damaging the rest of the planet.
The Trust needs your help to support this mission.
From The Heart of the World: The Elder Brother's Warning
Watch the first film made by Alan Ereira and the BBC in 1990 about the ancient Kogi civilisation from the Sierra Nevada De Santa Marta, Colombia.
Aluna:
The Movie
The follow up film was made 25 years later at the request of the Kogi Mamas because they said we had not heard them the first time.
1
We will offer the Kogi a way to communicate directly with the wider world.
2
We will respond to, and publicise, requests by the Kogi for help in protecting their territory and culture.
3
We will learn from the Kogi about their understanding of environmental management and publicise that knowledge through all media.
4
We will implement initiatives to educate young people about the principles and way of life of the Kogi in order to protect the planet for future generations.
Support UsThe Kogi message is important for us all. They consider themselves to be the guardians of the earth and are worried by our attempts to destroy it. They want their voice and knowledge to be heard around the world and for us to take action to protect the planet that we all share. The Kogi need your help to do this.