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Amazonian activist Nemonte Nenquimo tells her story in a potent memoir

From a child's curiosity about a visiting missionary to fighting oil companies, Amazonian activist Nemonte Nenquimo's autobiography shows the journey of an extraordinary Indigenous woman

By Kate Douglas

5 June 2024

Nemonte Nenquimo, Waorani leader from the Ecuadorian Amazon alongside other members of the Indigenous-led Ceibo Alliance.

Nemonte Nenquimo (centre) alongside other members of the Indigenous-led Ceibo Alliance

Jerónimo Zúñiga/Amazon Frontlines

We Will Not Be Saved
Nemonte Nenquimo with Mitch Anderson
Wildfire (UK, on sale) Abrams Books (US, 17 September, as We Will Be Jaguars)

AUTOBIOGRAPHIES rarely appear in New Scientist‘s culture pages. This one, however, isn’t just unusual, it is ground-breaking: the first book of its kind to be written by a member of the Waorani people, an Indigenous Amazonian group. Humans have been recording their life stories for over four millennia, so it is about time we heard from people like Nemonte Nenquimo. What she has experienced, while still only in her 30s, is…

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