Cofan Education Project Expands with Lifeboat Garden Center and Encyclopedia Initiative

Preserving Indigenous Knowledge and Strengthening Cultural Resilience

The First Analysis Institute of Integrative Studies (FAI) is proud to support the Cofan Education Project, an Indigenous-led initiative dedicated to preserving and transmitting the rich cultural heritage of the Cofan people in Amazonian Ecuador and Colombia. The project continues to grow in scope and impact, strengthening self-directed cultural preservation and intercommunity collaboration across the Amazon.

Since 2021, Cofan leaders Amelia Quenama, Gissela Yumbo, and Emmy Mosburg Borman have worked with community experts to create a pioneering cultural transmission program that safeguards traditional Cofan knowledge while integrating modern tools for education and environmental sustainability.

Their work has resulted in the documentation and cataloging of more than 100 medicinal plants, traditional techniques, foods, crafts, and daily practices, forming the foundation of the Cofan Encyclopedia—a comprehensive record of ancestral knowledge designed to preserve and share Indigenous wisdom for future generations. The Encyclopedia represents a major step toward self-determined cultural preservation, empowering Cofan communities to sustain their traditions and teach youth in ways that respect both traditional and contemporary forms of learning.

A significant milestone in this effort is the establishment of the Lifeboat Garden Center, a site in ancestral Cofan territory that serves as both a living classroom and conservation hub. The Center promotes the conservation and teaching of ancestral and medicinal plants while providing a gathering place for Indigenous Amazonian participants to exchange traditional plant knowledge, share ancestral practices, cultivate native species, and strengthen cooperation in protecting biodiversity and cultural heritage.

Looking ahead, the project’s leaders are working to complete, distribute, and digitize the Cofan Encyclopedia, ensuring this invaluable knowledge is preserved for generations to come. They also plan to expand the Lifeboat Garden Center into a permanent hub where Cofan elders can pass on essential cultural knowledge—including language, hunting, fishing, gardening, and cooking practices—to future generations.

FAI supports the Cofan Education Project as part of its broader mission to illuminate and strengthen community-led approaches to cultural and ecological sustainability. The project exemplifies the integrative values FAI seeks to highlight: uniting Indigenous knowledge, environmental stewardship, and intergenerational education to protect both cultural identity and the natural world that sustains it.