Amazon Conservation Team (ACT) explains why some indigenous groups of the Amazon rainforest chose to isolate themselves and describes the dangers that indigenous communities in the Colombian Amazon have experienced.

Isolated indigenous groups are susceptible to diseases that outsiders such as missionaries, poachers, and loggers bring. In addition, they face the threat of destruction to their lands from deforestation, illegal logging, and poaching. ACT, along with other organizations, has worked with the Colombian government to protect the right of indigenous peoples in voluntary isolation to live freely on their lands.

To learn more about ACT’s work, please visit http://www.amazonteam.org/

Illustration and Animation: Sebastian Correal