MOVIE • 2004

The Living Forest

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Living Forest explains the food forest system in use in an area near the river Amônia; a consortium in which everyone participates to provide better food for the entire community. Using forest management, the Ashaninka Indians turn degraded land into a place for communal cultivation. Banana trees are grown for food and also as fertilizer for other crops, including plants that are used for building materials. The video also shows how the Ashaninka are able to attract more wild game with the fruit that they grow, as well as keeping honeybees and turtles for food. By conducting studies of plants and animals they are continually finding ways to improve their system. Through communal, sustainable cultivation of the forest, these Indians protect their land and plan to feed themselves well into the future.