Radical tea: Nuwa means business
In Peru's Nuwa Forest, Indigenous Awajún women have converted their parcel of land to small-scale tea production.
Alto Mayo Tea (2022-02-07) by Freddy GuillenConservation International
Their slice of the Peruvian Amazon
“Nuwa” — which means “woman” in the Awajún language — is both the name of the forest and the line of teas that these women produce. Income from the tea helps support these communities while strengthening the women’s bond to their forest.
Alto Mayo Tea (2022-02-07) by Marlon de AguilaConservation International
The resurgence of a traditional custom
In the 1990s, the Awajún began leasing their communal lands for income. Gradually, their knowledge of propagating and using medicinal plants waned. In 2014, a group of Awajún women requested an area of the communal forest where they could grow the medicinal plants their ancestors had cultivated for both healing and cultural purposes.
Alto Mayo Tea (2022-02-07) by Marlon de AguilaConservation International
Nuwa teas and Conservation International
Today, 70 women are involved in the cultivation of traditional plants in the 9-hectare forest. Since 2018, Conservation International-Peru has worked with the women to market their teas, which are sold across Peru.
Knowledge passed down through generations
"This has been a great experience. I am very proud to see the value that our traditional customs have,” says Uziela Achayap. “We are motivated to continue working and protecting the forest, to continue learning from the grandmothers and mothers who teach us how to grow and use medicinal plants."
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