Support Indigenous Students in the Face of COVID19

Dear Friends and Supporters,

December in Peru coincides with both the closing of the academic year, and the period for entry exams. As we have been writing to you throughout the years, getting access to higher education and entering University is a very challenging endeavor for indigenous youth in the Northern Peruvian Amazon region. Most don´t have the economic means to travel to Iquitos and cover the costs of daily life and study fees. Those who could, or those who try to access a stipend, have to compete with students from the city, to get one of the much desired but limited study spots. In general, primary and secondary education in the far away indigenous villages is of much lower quality, and often entirely lacks an intercultural and bilingual approach, meaning that indigenous youth arrive in the city with a clear disadvantage. Only a very limited quota of study spots is reserved exclusively for indigenous students, the rest has to compete on equal terms with young folks from the city, who in general have reached a higher academic level when finishing secondary school.

Chaikuni´s Intercultural Education Program Sui Sui has for years been offering tutoring and extra classes to indigenous students, directly responding to their actual needs. This year, the main focus was on math, oratory and rhetoric skills. In November, in the time leading up to entry and semester exams, we offered 10 additional math classes and 23 lessons in oratory and rhetoric skills. Many of the participants in the classes were students which had newly arrived and aspired to get into University. Today we are happy to inform you that 7 of the 15 newly arrived aspirants have passed their entry exams!  

The dream: the struggle continues…

In terms of the main dream, i.e. that of their own student residence [which at the same time is the core of our campaign on GlobalGiving], the struggle sometimes might seem endless, but the dream is alive and well. After a change in government denied them the already agreed long term lease of a piece of land to build the student center, the negotiations continue in order to find a new solution. Three different areas have been pointed out, and each option is being investigated for its viability. It is a tedious process, frustrating at times, but Chaikuni continues to stand behind the students and support them in their advocacy to finally get a secure and adequate place of their own to live and study in Iquitos.

Thank you for standing with us, and thanks for everything you continue to do to support indigenous youth in the Peruvian Amazon.

With gratitude,

The Indigenous Students of OEPIAP and The Chaikuni Institute Team

Showing the reality of young indigenous students.

Dear Friends and Supporters,

Last month, we finally released the audiovisual project "Ser Indígena" (Being Indigenous), which consists of a documentary and a photographic exhibition. The project is the result of a long work with the students themselves, with the aim to show their reality, dreams, and challenges, and to reflect on interculturality and what it means to be indigenous in the context of a more and more globalized community. 

In this documentary, we get to know Jimena from the indigenous Achuar people, an Environmental Engineering student in Iquitos, who dreams of cleaning up the pollution that almost 5 decades of oil activity have left in her territory. We also get acquainted with Federico, a Language and Literature student from the Awajún people, who aspires to improve education in his community. Finally, we accompany Leonarda to her native Tikuna community on the Amazon. Leonarda is a Nursing student who hopes to contribute to the health of her people by combining traditional practices and modern medicine.

During the 50-minute journey, the viewer endorses the struggles, dreams and aspirations of these young indigenous students and their peoples, raising awareness about the importance of indigenous youth accessing higher education in order to choose their own destiny and become a fundamental part of this multicultural society.

Close to one hundred people attended the premiere in Iquitos on the 12th of October, the date coinciding with the International Day of Cultural Diversity (or Resistance Day, as some indigenous groups call the Day Columbus first arrived to the Americas). We also plan to project the documentary in educational institutions and other public spaces in the city to create broader awareness around the reality of indigenous students in Iquitos. 

At the same time, we opened a photo exhibition in a popular café in Iquitos, portraying pictures taken during the production of this documentary. The exhibition has been visited by hundreds of local Iquiteños and tourists alike.

For the students, it has been a very important and enriching experience. They learned how to plan and organize an audiovisual production, and wrote their own script. Furthermore, they improved their communication skills and were proud to show and see themselves reflecting on their own identity. We plan to do more of this in the near future.

More support to fulfill their dreams...

Besides this successful audiovisual experience, we continue supporting the Organization of Indigenous Peoples Students from the Peruvian Amazon (OEPIAP) organizing training courses, receiving and guiding new students upon their arrival to the city and throughout their university matriculation process. Oepiap elected a new student leadership in July, who will carry on the work of the prior board, continuing the negotiations with the regional government in order to fulfill their biggest dream, to have access to a piece of land and build their own student residency.

Once again, we thank you for everything you continue to do to support indigenous youth in the Peruvian Amazon.

With profound gratitude,

The Indigenous Students of OEPIAP and The Chaikuni Institute Team