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For thousands of years, Indigenous peoples have protected forests, rivers, grasslands, oceans, and wildlife through deep cultural knowledge, spiritual connection, and sustainable land stewardship. Today, they safeguard 80% of the world’s biodiversity, yet face some of the most severe threats from climate change and environmental degradation.
At WeAreTELL, we believe that any meaningful climate action must start with listening to, and learning from Indigenous communities. The Indigenous Knowledge & Cultural Stewardship program exists to amplify their wisdom, celebrate their guardianship of the Earth, and defend their right to protect their lands, languages, and ways of life.
We work with Indigenous communities to capture stories about:
forest guardianship and sustainable land use
seed saving and traditional agriculture
water conservation and seasonal knowledge
wildlife protection
sacred ecological practices
cultural traditions linked to nature
These stories highlight ways of living that restore balance and hold keys to global climate resilience.
Indigenous storytelling must be done with, not on, communities.
Our approach includes:
community approval at every stage
protection of sacred and restricted knowledge
cultural protocols and consent processes
hiring and training local storytellers
revenue-sharing or benefit-sharing where appropriate
Respect is at the center of every story we tell.
Climate change threatens not only environments, but entire languages and oral histories.
WeAreTELL documents:
stories in original languages
intergenerational teachings
songs, rituals, and ecological memory
traditional place names and meanings
We preserve these narratives through film, audio, photography, and archives ensuring they are passed on to future generations.
Indigenous communities are leaders, not victims.
We amplify their roles in:
forest conservation
biodiversity protection
climate adaptation
land rights movements
sustainable livelihoods
local and global climate governance
Our global distribution ensures their voices are heard by policymakers, journalists, researchers, and the wider public.
Climate justice cannot exist without Indigenous rights.
Through partnerships, we use storytelling to bring visibility to:
land rights struggles
forced displacement
mining and resource extraction conflicts
threats to sacred sites
criminalization of land defenders
cultural erasure
Our stories help build public support and pressure power structures toward accountability.
We adapt stories for:
local screenings
community radio
schools
WhatsApp groups
bilingual or trilingual platforms
Every story returns to the community it came from, as a matter of respect and shared ownership.
Join us as we change the way the world understands the climate crisis through powerful, human stories.
We’re inviting creators, storytellers, journalists, filmmakers, designers, and digital voices to join a growing community using storytelling to explore climate realities and solutions across the continent.
