V Indigenous Ayahuasca Conference: A Rallying Cry for Defense, Collaboration, and the Protection of Indigenous Traditions
From January 24 to 30, 2025, the V Indigenous Ayahuasca Conference took place in the Sacred Village of the Yawanawa people, located in the Indigenous Land of the Rio Gregório, in Tarauacá, Acre, Brazil. Organized by the Instituto Yorenka Tasorentsi (IYT), the Instituto Nixiwaka, and the Yawanawa Cooperative (COOPYAWA), this landmark event brought together 34 Indigenous nations from Brazil and across the globe, including representatives from Colombia, Peru, Mexico, Guatemala, Indonesia, Egypt, and the United States. In total, 285 participants attended, with 207 Indigenous and 78 non-Indigenous attendees, including researchers, institutional partners, and allies.
Our Director and Founder, Glauber Assis, attended the conference and has been publishing a series of articles on the subject to raise awareness among Western and non-Indigenous audiences about the central importance of Indigenous voices in discussions surrounding plant medicine and psychedelics.. This gathering was a pivotal moment for Indigenous communities to unite in defense of their rights and traditions, addressing pressing challenges posed by globalization and the commercialization of Ayahuasca.
Defending Ancestral Knowledge
Among the central issues discussed were the ongoing attempts by transnational corporations to patent Ayahuasca, the criminalization, and imprisonment of Indigenous leaders while traveling internationally, and the extractivism and cultural appropriation by individuals and organizations seeking financial gain without explicit permission to share this sacred medicine.
The conference fostered significant collaborations, strengthening the collective resistance against these threats. Indigenous leader Benki Piyako (@benki.piyako) of the Ashaninka people delivered the demands of the Indigenous participants to federal and state political authorities, who attended to acknowledge the event's spiritual, political, and diplomatic significance. As a powerful conclusion to his intervention, a detailed letter outlining the urgent need for territorial protection was formally presented to government representatives.
A Call to Action
This was more than a conference; it was a powerful and unequivocal declaration—a reaffirmation of Indigenous sovereignty and the right to preserve ancestral wisdom. It was a moment to acknowledge centuries of struggle against cultural appropriation, extractivism, and the relentless pressures of Western dominance over Indigenous knowledge. The resulting letter was disseminated internationally, and efforts will begin to develop legislative proposals at regional and national levels in Brazil to ensure the free movement of Indigenous peoples with their ancestral medicines.
This gathering was not just a conversation—it was a rallying cry, a movement to safeguard the sacred traditions that have guided Indigenous communities for generations. It reinforced the urgency of protecting Indigenous rights, fostering dialogue, and taking concrete steps toward legal recognition and cultural preservation in the modern world.
Honoring the Feminine Power of Ayahuasca
One of the most defining moments of the conference was a discussion panel dedicated to the sacred medicine, its traditions, and knowledge—led and conducted exclusively by Indigenous women.
Before an audience representing nearly 30 Indigenous nations from multiple continents, prominent voices such as Putanny Yawanawa, Elisa Vargas (Shipibo), Rozalia Zavala (Maya K’iche’), Pukeshaya Shenanawa, Vari Puyanawa, Julia Yawanawa, Laura Soriano Yawanawa, Shãtsi Ashaninka, and Daiara Tukano spoke with strength and clarity about the role of Indigenous women in preserving Ayahuasca traditions.
By honoring the feminine energy of Ayahuasca and invoking the presence of the Great Spirit and their ancestors, these wise and courageous women illuminated a path forward—one of renewal, balance, and deepened relationships that will guide future generations.