Nema Shanku

Peruvian Indigenous leader fighting for Amazonian land rights and climate justice

Nema Shanku: Defending the Amazon and Indigenous Rights

Nema Shanku, a member of the Asháninka people in Peru, has become a prominent voice for Indigenous rights and environmental protection in the Amazon rainforest. Born in the remote community of Tayakome in the 1990s, she witnessed firsthand the devastation caused by illegal logging and mining on her ancestral lands. After studying law at the National University of San Antonio Abad del Cusco, she dedicated her career to legal advocacy and grassroots organizing.

In 2018, Shanku co-founded Amazon Defenders, a network of Indigenous groups and NGOs working to secure land titles for Amazonian communities. Her efforts led to the recognition of over 1 million hectares of Asháninka territory by the Peruvian government, a landmark achievement that halted illegal resource extraction in those areas. Shanku also pioneered a satellite monitoring system to detect deforestation in real-time, which has been adopted by neighboring countries like Bolivia.

Shanku’s advocacy extends to the global stage. She represented Indigenous groups at the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), demanding that climate policies prioritize Indigenous knowledge and territorial sovereignty. Her speech, titled 'Our Forests Are Our Lungs', went viral and influenced the inclusion of Indigenous rights in COP26’s final agreement.

Locally, she established the Amazon Seed School, a bilingual education program that teaches Asháninka children about traditional ecological practices. This initiative has reduced youth migration to cities by 25% in partner communities. Shanku also collaborates with scientists to document medicinal plants and biodiversity in the Amazon, publishing studies in journals like Ecological Management.

Despite death threats from illegal loggers and corporate interests, Shanku remains undeterred. Her resilience was highlighted in a National Geographic profile, which called her 'the guardian of the Amazon’s heartbeat.' In 2022, she received the Goldman Environmental Prize, cementing her global reputation as a leader in climate justice.