Manaus, Brazil – September 5, 2025 – The International Workshop on Indigenous and Traditional Territories (ITTs) in Manaus will culminate today on a date of great significance: Amazon Day and International Indigenous Women’s Day. The International Indigenous Forum on Biodiversity (IIFB), the Indigenous Women Biodiversity Network (IWBN), and R-MIB-LAC, commemorates these two dates, united by a common purpose: to honor the vital role of the Amazon Basin and the tireless leadership of the women who are its guardians.
Amazon Day reminds us of the immense biological richness of the world’s largest humid tropical forest and its crucial role in global climate regulation. However, we cannot speak of the Amazon without recognizing the Indigenous Peoples who have protected it for millennia. Their ancestral knowledge and governance systems are key to the conservation and resilience of this ecosystem.
On this same date, we celebrate Indigenous Women worldwide. They are guardians of biodiversity, transmitters of traditional knowledge, healers of our nations, and leaders in the defense of their territories and rights. At this workshop, we have witnessed the strength and wisdom of women leaders, whose work demonstrates that conservation cannot advance without their full and effective participation.
The celebration of these two dates on the same day underscores a fundamental truth: the protection of the Amazon is inseparable from the empowerment of its women and their communities. To honor the Amazon is to honor the Indigenous women who have been its guardians and protectors, uniting environmental justice with social justice.
From Manaus, a vibrant heart of the Amazon, we reaffirm our commitment to ensuring that the knowledge, rights, and leadership of Indigenous Peoples, particularly that of women, are recognized as essential pillars of global conservation and climate action.
Photo Credits: mario Vilela/FUNAI