Since ancestral times, this Indigenous community has been living in balance with one of the most beautiful places on earth. But now, their rainforests are under threat – this is why we are helping. 

Imagine a world where we took exactly what we needed from the land– and no more. That’s the only world the Arhuaco, an Indigenous community in Colombia, knows. Regarded as the ‘earth keepers’, it is their life mission to save the sacred forests of Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta - a mission that Rituals is now committed to supporting – here’s why.

Life is all about balance

Devastating floods, destructive storms and fatal forest fires: in the last few years, nature has sent a very clear signal - our planet is off balance. If we want to try and reverse the effects of climate change, balance must be restored. As a society engrained with consumerism – we have become too comfortable taking more than we can give back. There is a lot that we can learn from the Arhuaco, an Indigenous community of over 34,000 people.. Since ancestral times, they have lived in harmony with the sacred forests in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, Colombia. Around 50,000 Indigenous people inhabit the mountains. Surviving off the crops they grow and the animals they keep, they live in harmony with nature – never taking more than they need. “From a very young age, parents in sacred places instilled in us that the human being is just one more element of nature and that everything around us is like a brother or sister,” explains Rogelio Mejia, one of the Arhuaco’s most important political leaders.  “I have to take good care of everything around me, the plants, the trees, the water, the animals, because everything plays a role in this world.” For centuries, his people have lived remote lives in the isolated mountains of the Sierra. They have allowed few outsiders into their communities, but after years of building trust through our Sacred Forests partnership, Rituals was invited. 

From the peaks of the ice-capped mountains down to the sandy shores and crashing waves, the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta is one of the most lush and biodiverse regions on Earth. Around half the size of Belgium, this area is a plethora of all that Earth has to offer – tropical reefs, icy mountain peaks, rainforests - you name it, it’s there. It has been considered one of the "most irreplaceable ecosystems in the world" by IUCN, but for The Arhuaco it’s the ‘Heart of the World.’ The map below shows where exactly this bountiful beauty lies.

Nature needs nurture 

Right now, however, they feel the heart is broken. “In the Sierra, we used to have 82 km of snow. Now, there are 7.6,” says Mejia. Over the last 50 years, the glaciers, essential for providing water to the whole of Colombia, have been melting and drying up. Deforestation, mining, logging, military activity and the cocaine industry have all had a devastating impact on the fauna and flora, and ancestral lands have been lost to extractive industries and illegal squatters. 

The Arhuaco people believe that the Sierra Nevada, the heart of the world, must be protected or the rest of the planet will suffer. This is what they have been trying to do, but the damaging effects of the likes of mining and climate change have had a stronger influence than they currently have the power to reverse. “When man exploits nature excessively, we create an imbalance and when nature is unbalanced, […]it is very difficult to repair damage of this level,” says Mejia. Though they have an incredible wealth of knowledge about the area and how to protect it, in our complex and uncertain world, these guardians now need allies.
 

Supporting Sacred Forests

The Arhuaco community therefore decided action was needed to be taken to reclaim the land before it was too late, welcoming help from non-Indigenous people. That is where Rituals’ support comes in. We have partnered with Sacred Forests, an innovative conservation enterprise, to help the Arhuaco reclaim, reforest and protect one of the most vital areas of land this planet has to offer. What makes Indigenous-led rewilding so unique, is that we are being completely guided by the Arhuaco’s wisdom. Conservation projects often use western data, science and maths to find solutions. But no one knows this land (and how to protect it) better than the Arhuaco community. So, what’s the plan?
 

Reclaim  

As mentioned, over the past few decades, tens of thousands of hectares of the Arhuaco’s most important and sacred land has been lost to illegal squatters and to the pressure of extractive industries. The project will support them in reclaiming the land that was taken. By the end of our collaboration, we hope to have helped them reclaim 12,000 hectares (120 square kilometres) of land. 

Reforest 

Once this land has been returned to them, the project will help to rewild, and replant trees in areas that have been deforested. 

Protect 

Where are we so far? 

Already in 2024, 6,000 hectares of land that previously belonged to the Arhuaco has been purchased and returned to them and 8,000 hectares of forest has been rewilded and protected. Thus far, through our partnership with Sacred Forests, we are protecting 6 million trees in one of the world’s most irreplaceable places, and we’ve only just begun. 

How you’re helping   

As part of our Profit Pledge, Rituals has committed to using 10% of our net profit* to support causes that are having a positive impact on people and planet – Sacred Forests  is one of these causes, meaning every purchase you make at Rituals will support the Arhuaco people and their efforts to reclaim, reforest and protect this extremely vital area. 

You can read more about our Profit Pledge here.

*From 2025 onwards, we commit to spend 10% of our net profit of the previous year (e.g. in 2025, we commit to spend 10% of our net profit of 2024)