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María Oberto Indígena del pueblo Wayuu en Venezuela habla de la importancia del dialogo intergeneracional como lo es la habilitación de jóvenes, en cuanto al conocimiento y la lucha del pasado y el presente.

El Día Internacional de la Madre Tierra, que se conmemora el 22 de abril de cada año, fue proclamado por la Asamblea General de las Naciones Unidas en el 2009 con el objetivo de reconocer que “la Tierra y sus ecosistemas son nuestro hogar”, así como recordar que es necesario “alcanzar un justo equilibrio entre las necesidades económicas, sociales y ambientales de las generaciones presentes y futuras”; este día brinda también la oportunidad de generar conciencia “acerca de los problemas que afectan a la Tierra y a las diferentes formas de vida que en ella se desarrollan”. 

Cultural Survival welcomes Alicia Moncada (Wayuu), who has joined as our new Director of Advocacy and Communications. She brings over 13 years of experience in human rights advocacy, research, and communication, with a focus on Indigenous Peoples' rights, gender justice, and climate justice. Moncada was born in Venezuela, sought refuge in Mexico, and is now based in London, England. Her academic background includes degrees in Law and Women's Rights, with specialized training in International Human Rights Law and International Humanitarian Law.
Produced by Shaldon Ferris (Khoi/San)

We interview Wilhelmina Van Dyk who coordinated the Khoikhoi language gathering in South Africa. This event put the Khoekhoegowab language in the spotlight and left attendees with basic vocabulary of the language after a few days.

Produced by : Shaldon Ferris
Interviewee: Wilhemina Van Wyk
Music: "Burn your village to the ground", by A Tribe Called Red - used with permission.
"Avantgarde" by Tyso, used with permission

In South Africa on November 1, 2019, a benefit sharing agreement was reached after many years of intense negotiations. This industry wide agreement was the first of its kind, and was launched between the Khoikhoi and San people, and the rooibos industry.

South Africa has been branded as “the Rainbow Nation” because of the diversity of its citizens. The country boasts a very liberal constitution and eleven official languages, which however do not include Indigenous languages. What is becoming more and more apparent lately is the exclusion of the Khoi and San languages especially from school curricula, radio, and television. IYX Radio is a new internet radio station that hopes to change the narrative.
Producer: Shaldon Ferris (Khoisan)
Interviewee: Sharri Cannel (San)

As the backbone of Indigenous communities, Indigenous women have over the years been instrumental in the preservation and transmission of traditional ancestral knowledge. As protectors of natural resources and keepers of scientific knowledge, Indigenous women are integral to the survival of their traditions.

Poverty, low levels of education and illiteracy, limited access to health care, basic sanitation, credit, and employment, limited participation in political life, and domestic and sexual violence are all prevalent problems among indigenous women. Besides, their right to self-determination, self-governance and control of resources and ancestral lands have been violated over centuries.
Still, Indigenous women are ensuring that traditional knowledge is carried over from generation to generation.
Language Activist Letitia Petersen tells us more.

Indigenous Women all around the world are subjected to marginalization and inequality.
As we commemorate International Women's Day, we celebrate the work of Lukretia Booysen (Griekwa, Nama), an Indigenous change maker who is the curator of The Koena Art Institute. Booysen tells us about the Institute's collaboration with the Iziko Art Museum.
Produced by Shaldon Ferris (Khoisan)
Interviewee: Lukretia Booysen (Griekwa, Nama)
"Anania by the Baba Project, Used with Permission
"Burn your village to the ground", by The Halluci Nation, used with permission

Krotoa, also known as Eva, was a young Khoi woman who played a significant and complex role in early South African history during the Dutch colonial period. Taken in as a servant in the household of Jan van Riebeeck, the first Dutch commander at the Cape, Krotoa served as a translator and cultural mediator between the Dutch settlers and her indigenous Khoi people. Fluent in both Dutch and Khoikhoi languages, she became a vital link in early negotiations and trade.

Ancestral remains of six Khoi and San individuals, exhumed between 1868 and 1924 and held at the Hunterian Museum in Glasgow, Scotland, have been returned to South Africa. The remains were formally repatriated in October 2025, marking a significant event for national healing and the restoration of dignity for the affected communities. The remains, which include those from the Northern and Western Cape, have been returned to the Iziko Museums in Cape Town and will be reburied in the Northern Cape at a later date.

Slavery played a significant role in the early history of Paarl, Western Cape, particularly during the 17th and 18th centuries under Dutch and later British colonial rule. Enslaved people—brought mainly from East Africa, Madagascar, India, and Southeast Asia, as well as Indigenous Khoisan people—were forced to work on farms, vineyards, and in households, forming the backbone of the local agricultural economy. Their labour was central to the development of Paarl’s wine and wheat industries.