The Asháninka live in the Central Amazon Region of Peru, and have been there for thousands of years. They are one of the largest indigenous groups living in the Amazon today.
The Asháninka are one of the largest Indian tribes in Peru, living by hunting, fishing and growing crops in villages of 50 to 200 people. Their homeland is a beautiful patchwork of forest-clad mountains and fast-flowing rivers on the fringes of the Amazon.
Many Asháninka still wear the traditional cushma, an all-in-one robe, and use annatto berries to paint their faces. Their most important food is manioc which they use to make masato, a slightly-fermented drink stored in hollowed-out logs.
The biggest threat to the Asháninka communities are bands of illegal loggers attempting to force the Indians into selling their mahogany for very little money. The more remote Asháninka communities want little from the outside world. However, those Asháninka who came out of the forest – and now live along the main rivers – needed to develop a sustainable income in order to avoid the perils of illegal logging and the highly dangerous coca trade, rampant in this area.
The Asháninka sought help from their friend for over 30 years, Dilwyn Jenkins: Ecotribal was set up in order to provide the Asháninka with a direct source of income, helping them retain control over their land and culture. Ecotribal is the only eco-tour company endorsed by Survival that visits tribal peoples, at their request.
