Rainforest Organization fosters projects in the Indigenous territories
of the Rio Xingu region in Brazil
The Xingu National Park also known as Xingu Indigenous Territory (TIX), which covers 10,200 square miles, was created in 1960 by the famous Brazilian Indigenists Orlando, Claudio and Leonardo Villas Boas. A further 45,000 square miles bordering the Xingu National Park was officially declared indigenous territory in August 1993 after Rainforest Organization spearheaded alongside the tribal leader Raoni Metuktire the first worldwide campaign to draw attention to the dangers of deforestation in the Amazon and the risk of extinction faced by its indigenous populations.
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With the support of the Brazilian government and 12 sister organizations, Rainforest Organization raised the necessary funds to demarcarte the boundaries of this new indigenous territory bordering the Xingu National Park, thus creating, with an overall area of over 55,000 square miles, one of the largest continuous rainforest reserves on the planet.
XINGU
Kayapó Territory
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The Kayapo territory encompasses approximately 45,000 square miles, a territory bigger than Cuba. It includes many villages, most of which are located near the banks of the Xingu river. Its population is estimated to be around 7,300 people. Their social organization, ritual life and cosmology are rich and complex.
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Nearly 8,000 people from sixteen tribes live in 158 villages in the Xingu Indigenous Territory (TIX), which covers an area of 10,200 square miles, as big as Massachusetts. These ethnic groups, while having distinct languages, have similar social, cultural and economic organizations shaped by years of interactions and exchanges. These are the Aweti, Kalapalo, Kamaiura, Kuikuro, Matipu, Mehinako, Nafukua, Naruvotu, Waura and Yawalapiti, Kawaiwete, Ikpen, Yudjja, Trumai, Tapayuna and Kisedje.
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Xingu Indigenous Territory
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