WASKA: The Forest Is My Family
Nina Gualinga of the Kichwa People of Sarayaku, speaks with the memory of her Apayaya (grandfather) about the ongoing cultural appropriation, environmental destruction and marginalization of Indigenous Peoples, revealing the essence of what it means to live as part of the forest, and questioning our very relationship to earth and the quest for healing.
- Original title: WASKA: The Forest Is My Family
- Country: Ecuador
- Year: 2024
- Length: 15
- Director: Nina Gualinga
- Producer: Marc Silver
- Co-directors: Daniel Boloh Miranda, Elizabeth Swanson
- Distributor: The Guardian
Nina Gualinga
Nina Gualinga is a leading advocate for Indigenous rights and climate justice. She actively advocates for the rights of women and is a spokeswoman for Mujeres Amazónicas, a collective of Indigenous women in the Ecuadorian Amazon defending their lives and lands, and fighting against systematic violence against Indigenous women. In 2020, she co-produced «Tiam – The Return», a short film that follows the journey of an Indigenous family escaping the impact of COVID-19. «Waska – The Forest Is My Family» marks her directorial debut.