Cultural Survival, Inc.

07.10.2005 When war breaks out, international investigators clamor to assess the human rights situations in the conflict areas. But these fact-finding missions often fail to consider the special concerns of indigenous peoples, and sometimes put local communities in greater danger.

26.09.2005 Some 15,000 Guatemalans shut down the Inter-American Highway earlier this month, protesting the fact that they've been shut out of Congressional debate over water privatization. The Congress subsequently called off consideration of the new policies and pledged to involve all groups in the decision-making process.

20.09.2005 The Totem Peoples Preservation Project is dedicated to supporting the sustainability of indigenous nomadic cultures, their livestock, and their ecological habitats in Eastern Siberia and Mongolia. With Cultural Survival's support, nomadic Dukha reindeer herders brought their concerns to Mongolian government officials for the first time in 2003.

31.08.2005 Alaskan Natives are staging a six-week vigil in Washington to protest the U.S. Congress' ninth attempt to pass legislation allowing for oil and gas drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The indigenous groups say if the legislation passes, their culture and the refuge's natural wildlife will face extinction.

30.08.2005 The government of Guatemala charges radio stations $28,000 for bandwidth, an inordinate sum for community radio stations that are operated by volunteers and typically have a two-to-five mile broadcast range. Consequently, bandwidth is rapidly being bought up by commercial radio stations that broadcast only in Spanish and do not address themes of concern to the Maya population. The remaining bandwidth is often usurped by wealthy evangelical interest groups.