Delcia Cuata Guimo has been president of the Tsimane’ Indigenous Women’s Organisation (OMITS) since April 2026. From the organisation’s inception (April 2024) until she became president two years later, she served as health secretary.
Delcia has always been keen to leave her community to find out what life is like elsewhere. Thanks to the National Confederation of Indigenous Women of Bolivia (CNAMIB) and the creation of one of its regional branches (OMITS), she had this opportunity. Through visits and workshops in other indigenous territories across the country, she became aware of the loss of ancestral cultures and the impact this has on people, as well as the potential of the CNAMIB to recover this knowledge. Delcia is proud to speak Tsimane’ and that her people have preserved so much of their culture, as in other indigenous territories the language has eroded significantly. As a member of OMITS, she has learnt about land disputes and the importance of caring for and defending the territory.
Looking to the future of OMITS, she hopes that workshops will be held in communities across the Tsimane’ Indigenous Territory (TICH) on women’s rights, sex education, gender-based violence, governance and the defence of the territory, and the importance of caring for nature.
As for our project, Delcia has shown particular interest in the photographs from the exhibition “Cultura Viva: Knowledge of the Amazon in Images”. She emphasises the importance of showing these to young people so that they do not lose their culture, and believes that they are useful for re-evaluating their traditions and crafts, as the images show how these have been preserved over time.
The IEK-CHANGES project is an ERC Starting Grant funded by the European Union (IEK-CHANGES, 101117423) to Dr. Álvaro Fernández-Llamazares.
Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Research Council Executive Agency. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
El proyecto IEK-CHANGES es una beca «Starting Grant» del Consejo Europeo de Investigación (ERC) financiada por la Unión Europea (IEK-CHANGES, 101117423) y concedida al Dr. Álvaro Fernández-Llamazares.
No obstante, las opiniones y puntos de vista expresados son exclusivamente de los autores y no reflejan necesariamente los de la Unión Europea ni los de la Agencia Ejecutiva del Consejo Europeo de Investigación. Ni la Unión Europea ni la autoridad que concede la subvención se hacen responsables de los mismos.
