Intertwined

Did you know that some indigenous groups still live in isolation, without any contact with the outside world? It's not out of ignorance, but an active choice.

In this episode, I'm joined by Niklas Ennen from Survival International. Together, we explore who uncontacted peoples are, why they have chosen to live in isolation, and look at concrete examples from around the world. We also take a look at Survival International's work to support uncontacted groups, and at their campaign-based approach.

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Survival International website: Home - Survival International

More on the Sentielese: Sentinelese

More on the Mashco Piro: Mashco Piro

News from the Hongana Manyawa: Latest news

Today I’m joined by César Nicolás Rojas Escamilla (a researcher from the National University of Colombia) and Lucymar Carvajalino Palechor, two representatives of CONCIP, the National Commission for Indigenous People’s Communication of Colombia. Together, we explore the incredible diversity of Indigenous peoples in Colombia and the groundbreaking work of the organization. The existence of an Indigenous commission for communication was never a given and it holds immense power. Through CONCIP, Indigenous communities can decide how they want to be represented in the world and denounce the abuses they face.

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"El Buen Vivir" episode 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMf7XMtAHIM

CONCIP YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@CONCIP-Colombia/featured

CONCIP website: https://concip.org/

Today, I’m joined by Geneviève Rose from IWGIA—the International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs—an organization founded in the late 20th century by anthropologists who decided to step beyond academia and into advocacy.

Together, we explore the origins of IWGIA as well as the critical work they do, from documenting Indigenous struggles to addressing Indigenous rights, with a focus on issues such as gender equity and climate finance. We will also look at how perceptions of Indigenous peoples and their rights have shifted since the start of the organization.

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IWGIA website: IWGIA - IWGIA - International Work Group for Indigenous AffairsThe Indigenous World 2026 (IWGIA's year book): The Indigenous World - IWGIA - International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs

In this episode, I’m joined by Laila Kasuri to discuss her paper "A Systemic Review of Indigenous People Participation in Dominant Systems of Water Governance", which looks at Indigenous participation in dominant water governance systems. The conversation explores how and to what extent Indigenous communities are included in water governance, the challenges they face, and examples from around the world.

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Our conversation is based on: Kasuri, L., & Watkins, —. (2025). A systematic review of Indigenous peoples’ participation in dominant systems of water governance. Nature Water ->A systematic review of Indigenous peoples’ participation in dominant systems of water governance | Nature Water

Today I’m joined by Anneke Trux, co-lead of the GIZ projects ProSoil and Soil Matters, funded by the BMZ, the EU, and the Gates Foundation, to talk about soil and biochar. Biochar is a pre-Columbian indigenous technology that is now beingused to tackle soil degradation in different regions of the world. Together, we explore how this technology works and what it can offer modern farmers, including women farmers.

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ProSoil: https://www.giz.de/en/projects/soil-protection-and-rehabilitation-food-security

Soil Matters: https://www.giz.de/en/projects/soil-matters-innovations-soil-health-and-agroecology

I’m joined today by Jazzy Rasolojaona from NaturalJustice for a conversation about Indigenous rights to landacross Africa. We talk about the organization’s work, the pressures communities face, and a revealing example of land grabbing in Madagascar that shows why this struggle matters now more than ever.

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Click here to learn more about Natural Justice: https://naturaljustice.org/

Click here to learn more about the case of Sakatia: https://naturaljustice.org/save-the-icca-of-sakatia-in-madagascar-against-land-grabbing/

In this episode, I’m joined by Mrinalini Rai (Tina), an Indigenous woman from South Asia and the founder of Women4Biodiversity. Together, we explore the link between women and biodiversity, the challenges women face in this field, and the important work being done by Women4Biodiversity. We also look at the international level, including conservation programs and what more needs to bedone to include women effectively in biodiversity decision-making

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Click here to learn more about Women4Biodiversity: https://women4biodiversity.org/

Click here to listen to Voices Unveiled, the podcast from Women4Biodiversity: https://women4biodiversity.org/podcasts/ or https://open.spotify.com/show/49kmla61fcG9xx8DjULXbG?si=3079f320362e42e9

Today I’m joined by Viviana Figueroa, an Indigenous Omaguaca woman from northern Argentina with a PhD in law. She is not only the first Indigenous woman in Argentina to earn a PhD in law, but also the country’s first Indigenous diplomat at the United Nations. Together, we explore who the Omaguaca people are and their relationship to land and biodiversity, as well as Viviana’s remarkable career and her contributions to international processes such as the UN Convention on Biological Diversity.

“80% of the world’s biodiversity is found on Indigenous territories.”
If that sentence sounds familiar, it’s because it’s been widely repeated since a 2008 World Bank report—but how accurate is it really?

To unpack the truth behind this claim, I’m joined by Álvaro Fernández-Llamazares, a researcher at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, who recently co-authored a scientific paper critically examining the origins and implications of this figure.

Together, we explore what current research really says about the relationship between Indigenous Peoples and biodiversity, how Indigenous knowledge contributes to conservation science, and why it was important to correct this claim — even if it sounds positive.

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Our conversation is based on the article “ A baseless statistic could harm the Indigenous Peoples it is meant to support” (Fernández-Llamazares et al., 2024)

Today, I’m joined by Yon Fernández-de-Larrinoa, Head of the Indigenous Peoples Unit at the FAO, to explore another way of doing land restoration: the Indigenous Biocentric Restoration. The idea is simple — Indigenous cultures often perceive and relate to the land in fundamentally different ways. Because of their deep, long-standing relationship with their territories, their knowledge of the land can be more rooted and nuanced than what’s found in textbooks. Together, we’ll explore the different facets of this approach, its challenges, and what Yon believes are some of the keys to success when doing restoration.