GUYANA
Guyana's South Rupununi, on the edge of the Amazon, is a vast and sparsely inhabited region where savannah land is interspersed with rainforest, and creeks and rivers spring from the mountains. Indigenous Wapichan, Wai Wai and Macushi peoples have lived here for millennia, the custodians of these landscapes, but today their health, culture and livelihoods are threatened by the gold mines that have sprung up within their territories. While the communities have long practised artisanal mining, large, foreign-owned mining corporations are slicing the top from sacred mountains, felling trees and polluting the rivers with deadly mercury.
These photos were taken in Guyana in 2020, as I worked alongside the Wapichan people and visited Marudi mine, on assignment with Forest Peoples Programme and the South Rupununi DIstrict Council.
These photos were taken in Guyana in 2020, as I worked alongside the Wapichan people and visited Marudi mine, on assignment with Forest Peoples Programme and the South Rupununi DIstrict Council.