Indigenous communities online
Roaming through the rainforest armed with bows, arrows and smart phones, Indigenous communities in Brazil use apps to shine a light on land grabbing and illegal logging. Young influencers in Colombia turn to social media to challenge prejudices against their culture, while Indigenous peoples fighting oil extraction on their native lands in the Amazon use Twitter to share their legal victories with the world.

Smartphones and tablets have long been vital in the fight to preserve Pachamama, or "Mother Earth." Many Indigenous peoples hold nature in very high regard.  

Old knowledge for more environmental protection
From Australia to Russia to India, many countries around the world are home to Indigenous populations, and many live in areas rich in biodiversity. Learning pack #9 "Ancestral treasures: Environmental protection using Indigenous knowledge" explores some very old ways of life that give an insight into Indigenous peoples and their commitment to the environment.

What can we learn from them? How can we apply techniques used by camel nomads in India or Aztecs in South America to the problems we face today? And what can we learn from our own ancestors about local climate and environmental protection?

Learning pack #9 "Ancestral treasures" helps young people unearth their own ancestral treasures and get involved in protecting the environment.  

For children and young people aged 12 and up
The materials are suitable for children and young people from the age of 12, and enable teachers to tackle the topic of "Indigenous people" and "environmental protection methods that have been passed down for generations" in a playful and interactive way. The material can be used free of charge for non-commercial purposes.

The learning pack includes:

• 1 booklet for teachers (for classroom teaching)
• 1 interactive workbook for participants (for distance learning)
• 6 films and 4 articles (links to all the reports can be found in the learning booklet and workbook)  

For in-person lessons:
Please begin by downloading the "Booklet for teachers" when you are preparing your lessons. There you will find copies of all the worksheets, including explanatory handouts and solutions. You will find the booklet available as a PDF file under "Explore More."
 
For distance learning: 
When conducting lessons online, please also download the interactive "Workbook for participants" along with the "Booklet for teachers." You will find both under "Explore More." You may then send the workbook PDF file to participants as an email attachment. The workbook includes the worksheets but not the solutions. Participants may complete their work alone on their computers, save the work and send it back to you. Participants will require Adobe Acrobat Reader to complete the workbook. It is available to download for free.
 
Write to us 
If you have questions about our Global Ideas learning packs or if you need a print version of the material, including the DVD, please contact us at: globalideas@dw.com