Magdaléna Rojo

At the beginning of your book, We Will Be Jaguars, you write that you were scared to tell the stories of your people because they have never been told this way. How do you feel now that the book is out?

Nemonte Nenquimo

It feels like a miracle. I am proud. And, on the other hand, for everyone who reads the book, do it with respect because the Waorani people are not really writers. For thousands of years, from the generations of our grandparents, we’ve told stories orally. Every morning, in the afternoon, throughout the fieldwork, or during fishing, we constantly tell stories. It is our culture.

I have read books by missionaries, but they cut out a lot of knowledge. They want to tell our story from the white man’s perspective so readers will say, Poor indigenous people. We have to save them. But really, the way Indigenous people live their daily lives is very profound in spiritual connection and connection with nature. 

Magdaléna

Your husband Mitch Anderson is a coauthor of the book—what was his role?

Nemonte

I feel very proud of Mitch, my partner, and the father of my children. He has come to live with our people, and both of us learned a lot while we created the book. He comes from the world of the system, and I come from the world of the virgin jungle, the place of the closest spiritual connection with the land. This book came out of both of our efforts. 

I am very happy that this story came to life in a written form. And for that, it was important for me to be back in the jungle. Seeing the surroundings, mapping projects, empowering women—Mitch was getting to know me. 

It was nerve-wracking and difficult to tell my dad that Mitch was coming to learn about my childhood. Mitch was asking my mom what she liked, how she grew up, and how I grew up. He was taking notes and recording on his cell phone. Not only did he transform my oral speech but also the speech of my dad, my mom, my brothers, my uncles, and even my friends. 

Magdaléna

Could you tell me more about how the Waorani people see the world?

Nemonte

Mother Earth gives us all life. We don’t own many things, but we have a lot of diversity in the jungle—and we learn from it every day. The territory is collective. 

If one of our neighbors is sick, we all bring them tea, accompany them, and take care of them. Our people and nature live in a collective harmony.

The capitalist economic system says that Indigenous people don’t have knowledge, that we don’t know there is oil underneath the land. But that’s not right. My father tells me what my grandfather told him. Inside the Earth, there is the blood of the ancestors. That must stay under the Earth since it is there to balance the Earth and life. It is sacred. It cannot be touched. But today, money is worth more than life, more than water, more than trees, more than the spiritual connection and the connection of being with family. I cried when my dad told me that. 

Magdaléna

Is this what motivated you to become an environmental activist and what keeps you going?

Nemonte

I have always felt motivated by nature and by my father. My father, from when he was born to when he was 11 years old, grew up in a virgin jungle that was not in contact with the outside world. After he turned 12, he was in contact with white civilization. I asked him how he felt once they were around, and my father said, Now, I feel daily threat.

Magdaléna

Spirituality is one very important topic that you talk about in your book. What is spirituality to you?

Nemonte

I think that we are all connected to the Earth, but some people have been spiritually disconnected. All human beings—including the white people of Europe and of the USA—had a spiritual connection for many centuries and many generations. But over time, since they discovered fossil fuels, mining, and other things in the economy, that changed. 

Politicians started to become materialistic. They had to accumulate things, they wanted to have power, without understanding nature. 

I am trying to address this. In the face of capitalism, in the face of mining, in the face of deforestation, in the face of the government. We know that within our territory, there is plenty of life. It is not just wasteland. Outsiders and the government say we are lost but really, we are not lost. We have a deep love for Mother Nature and for the land. 

What motivates me and gives me strength is that Mitch is on the same side of this collective fight for the world and Mother Nature. What we are trying to make visible to the world is that people must connect with spirituality again to heal their spaces.

Magdaléna

The first part of your book is about your childhood that was influenced by missionaries.

Nemonte

Yes, I had some confusing life experiences because many people from the outside would come to the jungle and point to things that must be developed to live a good life. However, when I went to the city, I felt the cruelest suffering. I realized that nature was calling me back. I was trying to save myself by going back to where I came from, where my roots are. If I did not, I would have been lost like in many other cultures, where they lost their knowledge, their language, and their culture. 

Magdaléna

You were taken out of the jungle by the missionaries who were present throughout your childhood. The book is very intimate in how you describe your life with missionaries and the confusion that caused. For example, you disclose how you were sexually abused by a pastor. On the other hand, you also talk about how you healed these traumas. What helped you?

Nemonte

I was abused by the pastor. I tried to commit suicide several times, and that is not even in the book because I did not want to write it. It was very sacred—it was not easy to talk about this part of my life. Keeping it for myself was also a trauma, but writing this book felt like therapy. 

Throughout this struggle, I saw that many women had similar experiences. I realized it does not happen only to Indigenous people, but also to white women. I had many conversations that felt freeing. Now, I attend therapy every three months, and I am taking medicinal plants that are known to help people forget, to really heal. To be a great leader, it is very important to focus on ourselves, too. 

I am doing all of this to be able to help others. If I remained silent, the children would also suffer. I had to tell the truth so they understand what is important to defend. 

Magdaléna

You have become a very vocal and respected leader of the Indigenous people fighting to protect the environment. How does Waorani culture see women?

Nemonte

In our culture, we respect first and foremost the Mother Earth, Mother Nature. She is the mother who gives life, food, water—everything. Waorani women are spiritually connected. They are wise with nature itself, they heal our traumas and emotional problems, and they give life to living beings. So, for most of our history, there was no discrimination—women were always leaders.

Since the contact with white civilization, however, I can see that worldview being lost. That is why I have focused my work on women’s leadership. We must reconnect to our roots and respect the power of strong women who make decisions for peace. 

Magdaléna

Being an environmental activist in a Latin American country can be dangerous. Do you ever feel fear?

Nemonte

I was recently afraid when we filed a lawsuit against an oil company. Indigenous elders told me not to mess with them. It is not a game. It is a powerful company. They have a lot of money, a lot of power. They could kill your husband, your children, they told me. 

I asked my dad what he thought. He closed his eyes and said: Your great grandfather and your grandfather were attacked by their enemies over the land. They never gave up. You also have this warrior blood. Accompanied by me and by your beloved husband and allies, you don’t have to be afraid. If they kill you, more Nemontes will rise. 

Magdaléna

Apart from being an activist, you are also a mother. What is the relationship your children have with the jungle?

Nemonte

I have two children. My daughter is nine years old, and my son is three. 

Both were born in the Amazon. However, we left the jungle when my son was seven months old. We went back to the Amazon on a vacation this past June, and we were there for almost the entire month. He was crying at the beginning, because of the jungle, the water, all the mosquitoes, and then he began to adapt. By the time we came back to the city, he just wanted to be naked and without shoes. 

As for my daughter, she can adapt quickly to anything. She’s a very brave girl—she inspires me. She is also very proud of me; she tells people: Mom is not working for companies to make money, she is saving the planet. When I grow up, I’ll also talk about climate change. I think I’ll be a singer.

Magdaléna

How have you integrated the roles of mother, wife, and activist?

Nemonte

I believe that our husbands, fathers, and even our friends should create space for women, empower them, and encourage them. This effort needs to come from the heart. 

My partner, for example, is from California, which is a different world from mine. Since the beginning, our dream was to have mutual respect for each other. I wanted to learn about him, and he wanted to learn about me. So he came to live with my family and other Indigenous peoples in the Amazon. He always supports me so that I can be a leader.

Magdaléna

What are you working towards now?

Nemonte

We are always working to empower Indigenous people so that they do not have to depend on white men.

With the book, I want to go to different countries. My dream is to reach the most powerful, wealthy people and make them understand and reconnect with Mother Nature. I think a lot about women in the book. I think about how we can have more strength and courage to educate, to connect with Mother Nature, to heal ourselves to be able to heal our children, our families, our friends. We—women—we have our own voice.