Kwarte Umuke
Mamo Arwawiku Izquierdo Torres
Mamo Arwawiku is the spiritual founder (or Mamo) and guide of the Kwarte Umuke community of the Iku people (also known as Arhuaco). This community is situated on the front line of the resistance between their culture and that of the ‘younger brother’ (Westerners) in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, Colombia. This is where four indigenous peoples live, who have skillfully survived the extermination attempts of the Spanish, the Capuchin missionaries, paramilitaries, the megaprojects, and all those who want to wipe out the indigenous people in order to govern as a single entity. In the struggle, mainly women have been attacked, losing their womb, their family, their language and their knowledge. That is why Mamos like Arwawiku have focused on defending their territories, like the place where he planted the seed (kankurwa) that has sprouted as a big community in the front lines of re-existence.
From a very early age, Mamo Arwawiku learned to heal and defend the territory following the spiritual teachings of his parents and grandparents. For this, it is necessary to connect his thoughts with Mother Earth, to talk to her and to take care of her in each territory. In order to heal, he learned to walk through different territories to identify where the destructive thoughts come from and to know in which part of the territory the diseases come from.
Mamo Arwawiku has traveled to various countries warning of the dangers of destroying the landscapes and showing how we are making Mother Earth sick. He has focused on reweaving the spiritual fabric between countries. If he has the opportunity to teach people to connect their thoughts with Mother Earth and heal, he does it because it is his mission. At 78 years of age in 2024, his job is to pass the knowledge on to the next generations, so that they can heal, recover their culture, their territory, their knowledge and defend life from the spirit
Seynawiku Izquierdo Torres
Seynawiku Izquierdo Torres (1987) was born in Donachui in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta in Colombia. In 2004 he moved from the high mountains to Kwarte Umuke, where he began to work as a representative of the Kankurwa community while raising a family. Seynawiku is an apprentice training towards becoming a Mamo, a spiritual guide. In his practice he weaves chinchorros, mantas and more. He always aims to teach younger siblings, or westerners, to ‘root the thinking’, enabling them to give importance to the caring for Mother Earth, something which corresponds to all human beings.
María Eufemia
María Eufemia Arroyo Izquierdo (2002) grew up in the deepest part of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, next to the snow-peaked mountains at the center of the Indigenous reservation where the four different cultures of the region meet. Even though she was given a western name, she was recognized as a guardian weaver of her culture and a guardian of the feminine thought, which is essential for the care of Mother Earth. As a young mother herself, she was given the task of caring for the relation between Mother and child, where the caring for water begins. After her education she moved to the Kwarte Umuke community where, through traditional work, she looks for harmony in the defense of the Sierra Nevada region.
Dwasimney Del Carmen
Dwasimney Del Carmen Izquierdo Torres (2006) is a member of the Kankurwa community of Kwarte Umuke and an assistant for the traditional and spiritual work of Mamo Arwawiku. She is part of the fabric of Iku culture. Dwasimney is enthusiastic to be part of the ever-continuing of histories in both past and future of the Iku, who give importance especially to women, as is determined by their ancestors. She is eager to share the deep meaning of weaving, in particular the weaving of tutus, in the hope that we gain an understanding of them.
Dwanimako Arroyo Izquierdo
Dwanimako Arroyo Izquierdo (2000) lives in Donachui in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, Colombia as a member of the Iku people. When he was young his family moved to the central zone in the Kwarte Umuke community, where he began his studies at the ethno-educative institution Imanuel Lyceum of the North. After finishing his studies in 2019, he began the process of remembering his ancestral culture. He is determined to strengthen the care for Mother Earth by protecting the territory: “Donachui is the heart of a living world where the thought is protected as the Law of Origin”.
Dwanimako is on the pursuit for the autonomy of his community, taking care of their native seeds and their ancestral agriculture practices. He works with women (Atis) and authorities of various communities on protecting Mother Earth, the thought that cares for life and gives us all food and protection. He learns by listening to the elders and follows the guidance of the Mamos (spiritual guides), who listen to Mother Earth and deliver offerings on the diverse territories. His dream is to share their story so that we all defend Mother Earth, together with the environmental defense, a healthy life and the care of love.