Developing Education Curriculum Centered on the Stories of the Marubo Tribe and our Interconnectedness

Student Researcher

Tara Vasanth '23, Major" Art History, Major: Environmental Policy. 

Faculty Mentors

Erica Garroutte and Dr. Kathryn Lanouette

Project Description

Radical change starts with understanding our connection to the environment and to the global community. Documented in her Tribes on the Edge film, Céline Cousteau is partnering Beto of the Marúbo tribe to share the story of the Indigenous communities of the Vale do Javari region of the Brazilian Amazon, who are fighting for their survival and rights as guardians of a globally-important ecosystems. Céline is using storytelling to document how health crises, human rights issues, and environmental degradation in the Brazilian Amazon are not only threatening the survival of Indigenous communities, but also the protection of the irreplaceable ecosystems that ensure our planet's resilience to climate change.

The Javari Project is bringing together a team of international partners who can raise awareness about the role of the Indigenous Communities of the Vale do Javari region in protecting global resources and about the interconnectedness between people and the environment at the global and local scale. In collaboration with the Javari Project, Tara led the development of a curriculum for 9-12-year-olds that leads students through a thoughtful examination of our interconnectedness at the local and global scale through active listening to the stories of the Marubo Tribe of the Vale do Javari region of Brazil. The curriculum developed by Tara is being used by international teachers and the Javari Project to engage students in conversations about our interconnectedness and the stories of the Marubo tribe.

Project ID - Format

21-009-21 - CRP Year

21-009-22 - CRP Semester

21-009-23 - CRP Semester