In the heart of Bolivia, an Amazonian society is losing its traditional knowledge of the medicinal value of local plants, to the detriment of its children's health. The Tsimane' are a small seven thousand-strong population living in a lowland region of Bolivia, who possess tremendous knowledge about the plants they share their forest with.
Their botanical know-how trickles down through the generations and allows them to use the local plant-life for construction, tool-making, medicine and food. These plants account for over half of their household consumption of goods, while those purchased from the outside world make up a meagre three per cent at most.
But globalisation is changing all that. The Tsimane' are now starting to integrate into societies that place no value on their indigenous knowledge. They are promised alternatives in the form of Western medicine without necessarily having access to it. Their culture is disappearing.
But unlike many ...
