0:00:00.000,0:00:01.866 Now, I'm an ethnobotanist. 0:00:01.866,0:00:04.121 That's a scientist who [br]works in the rain forest 0:00:04.121,0:00:07.552 to document how people use local plants. 0:00:07.552,0:00:10.608 I've been doing this for a long time, 0:00:10.608,0:00:12.377 and I want to tell you, 0:00:12.377,0:00:15.344 these people know these forests[br]and these medicinal treasures 0:00:15.344,0:00:18.493 better than we do and[br]better than we ever will. 0:00:18.493,0:00:20.801 But also, these cultures, 0:00:20.801,0:00:22.345 these indigenous cultures, 0:00:22.345,0:00:27.024 are disappearing much faster[br]than the forests themselves. 0:00:27.024,0:00:29.974 And the greatest and[br]most endangered species 0:00:29.974,0:00:31.778 in the Amazon rain forest 0:00:31.778,0:00:33.618 is not the jaguar, 0:00:33.618,0:00:35.343 it's not the harpy eagle, 0:00:35.343,0:00:39.164 it's the isolated and uncontacted tribes. 0:00:39.164,0:00:42.923 Now four years, I injured my [br]foot in a climbing accident 0:00:42.923,0:00:44.517 and I went to the doctor. 0:00:44.517,0:00:45.991 She gave me heat, 0:00:45.991,0:00:48.445 she gave me cold, Aspirin, 0:00:48.445,0:00:52.335 narcotic painkillers, anti-inflammatories, 0:00:52.335,0:00:54.192 cortisone shots. 0:00:54.192,0:00:56.209 It didn't work. 0:00:56.209,0:00:57.696 Several months later, 0:00:57.696,0:00:59.613 I was in the northeast Amazon, 0:00:59.613,0:01:01.606 walked into a village, 0:01:01.606,0:01:04.323 and the shaman said, "You're limping." 0:01:04.323,0:01:06.632 And I'll never forget[br]this as long as I live. 0:01:06.632,0:01:08.466 He looked me in the face and he said, 0:01:08.466,0:01:12.912 "Take off your shoe and give [br]me your machete." 0:01:12.912,0:01:15.187 (Laughter) 0:01:15.187,0:01:16.871 He walked over to a palm tree 0:01:16.871,0:01:18.437 and carved off a fern, 0:01:18.437,0:01:19.579 threw it in the fire, 0:01:19.579,0:01:21.121 applied it to my foot, 0:01:21.121,0:01:23.160 threw it in a pond of water, 0:01:23.160,0:01:25.166 and had me drink the tea. 0:01:25.166,0:01:28.518 The pain disappeared for seven months. 0:01:28.518,0:01:30.654 When it came back, I went[br]to see the shaman again. 0:01:30.654,0:01:32.399 He gave me the same treatment, 0:01:32.399,0:01:36.499 and I've been cured for three years now. 0:01:36.499,0:01:39.151 Who would you rather be treated by? 0:01:39.151,0:01:41.957 (Applause) 0:01:41.957,0:01:43.785 Now make no mistake, Western medicine 0:01:43.785,0:01:45.735 is the most successful system of healing 0:01:45.735,0:01:47.235 ever devised, 0:01:47.235,0:01:49.760 but there's plenty of holes in it. 0:01:49.760,0:01:51.508 Where's the cure for breast cancer? 0:01:51.508,0:01:53.378 Where's the cure for schizophrenia? 0:01:53.378,0:01:55.772 Where's the cure for acid reflux? 0:01:55.772,0:01:57.969 Where's the cure for insomnia? 0:01:57.969,0:01:59.888 The fact is that these people 0:01:59.888,0:02:01.924 can sometimes, sometimes, sometimes 0:02:01.924,0:02:03.940 cure things we cannot. 0:02:03.940,0:02:06.002 Here you see a medicine man[br]in the northeast Amazon 0:02:06.002,0:02:07.532 treating Leishmaniasis, 0:02:07.532,0:02:09.863 a really nasty protozoal disease 0:02:09.863,0:02:13.264 that afflicts 12 million[br]people around the world. 0:02:13.264,0:02:15.927 Western treatment are[br]injections of antimony. 0:02:15.927,0:02:18.608 They're painful, they're expensive, 0:02:18.608,0:02:20.349 and they're probably[br]not good for your heart. 0:02:20.349,0:02:21.899 It's a heavy metal. 0:02:21.899,0:02:23.257 This man cures it with 0:02:23.257,0:02:25.813 three plants from the Amazon rain forest. 0:02:25.813,0:02:28.102 This is the magic frog. 0:02:28.102,0:02:30.828 My colleague, the late[br]great Loren McIntyre, 0:02:30.828,0:02:32.877 discoverer of the source lake of Amazon, 0:02:32.877,0:02:34.927 Laguna McIntyre in the Peruvian Andes, 0:02:34.927,0:02:37.041 was lost on the Peru-Brazil border 0:02:37.041,0:02:38.639 about 30 years ago. 0:02:38.639,0:02:40.463 He was rescued by a group of isolated 0:02:40.463,0:02:43.216 Indians called the Matses. 0:02:43.216,0:02:44.705 They beckoned for him to follow them 0:02:44.705,0:02:46.504 into the forest, which he did. 0:02:46.504,0:02:48.959 There, they took out palm leaf baskets. 0:02:48.959,0:02:51.581 There, they took out these[br]green monkey frogs 0:02:51.581,0:02:53.819 — These are big suckers,[br]they're like this — 0:02:53.819,0:02:56.202 and they began licking them. 0:02:56.202,0:02:59.120 It turns out, they're[br]highly hallucinogenic. 0:02:59.120,0:03:00.822 McIntyre wrote about this, and it was read 0:03:00.822,0:03:04.112 by the editor of High Times Magazine. 0:03:04.112,0:03:06.243 You see, the ethnobotanists have friends 0:03:06.243,0:03:08.280 in all sorts of strange cultures. 0:03:08.280,0:03:09.893 This guy decided he would go down 0:03:09.893,0:03:11.616 to the Amazon and give it a whirl, 0:03:11.616,0:03:14.950 or give it a lick, and he did, 0:03:14.950,0:03:16.138 and he wrote, 0:03:16.138,0:03:18.005 "My blood pressure went through the roof, 0:03:18.005,0:03:20.415 I lost full control of[br]my bodily functions, 0:03:20.415,0:03:22.165 I passed out in a heap, 0:03:22.165,0:03:24.381 I woke up in a hammock six hours later, 0:03:24.381,0:03:26.655 felt like God for two days." 0:03:26.655,0:03:28.376 (Laughter) 0:03:28.604,0:03:29.987 An Italian chemist read this and said, 0:03:29.987,0:03:31.863 "I'm not really interested[br]in the theological aspects 0:03:31.863,0:03:33.571 of the green monkey frog. 0:03:33.571,0:03:36.288 What's this about the[br]change in blood presure? 0:03:36.288,0:03:38.572 Now, this is an Italian chemist 0:03:38.572,0:03:40.867 who's working on a new treatment[br]for high blood pressure 0:03:40.867,0:03:42.667 based on peptides in the skin 0:03:42.667,0:03:44.293 of the green monkey frog, 0:03:44.293,0:03:46.319 and other scientists are looking 0:03:46.319,0:03:50.490 at a cure for drug-resistant staph aureus. 0:03:50.490,0:03:53.022 How ironic, if these isolated Indians 0:03:53.022,0:03:54.543 and their magic frog 0:03:54.543,0:03:56.594 prove to be one of the cures. 0:03:56.594,0:03:58.227 Here's an Ayahuasca shaman 0:03:58.227,0:04:00.000 in the northwest Amazon, in[br]the middle of a yage ceremony. 0:04:00.000,0:04:02.594 I took him to Los Angeles 0:04:02.594,0:04:04.260 to meet a foundation officer 0:04:04.260,0:04:05.662 looking for support 0:04:05.662,0:04:07.796 for moneys to protect their culture. 0:04:07.796,0:04:10.230 This fellow looked at the[br]medicine man, and he said, 0:04:10.230,0:04:13.337 "You didn't go to medical school, did you" 0:04:13.337,0:04:15.037 The shaman said, "No, I did not." 0:04:15.037,0:04:17.898 He said, "Well, then what can[br]you know about healing?" 0:04:17.898,0:04:19.432 The shaman looked at him and he said, 0:04:19.432,0:04:21.592 "You know what? If you have an infection, 0:04:21.592,0:04:23.218 go to a doctor," 0:04:23.218,0:04:24.919 but he said, "but many human afflictions 0:04:24.919,0:04:27.293 are disease of the heart, 0:04:27.293,0:04:30.049 the mind, and the spirit. 0:04:30.049,0:04:31.961 Western medicine can't touch those. 0:04:31.961,0:04:34.417 I cure them." 0:04:34.417,0:04:38.550 (Applause) 0:04:38.550,0:04:40.278 But all is not rosy in learning 0:04:40.278,0:04:42.246 from nature about new medicines. 0:04:42.246,0:04:44.345 This is a viper from Brazil, 0:04:44.345,0:04:47.823 the venom of which was studied at[br]the Universidade de São Paulo here. 0:04:47.823,0:04:49.212 It was later developed 0:04:49.212,0:04:51.144 into ace inhibitors. 0:04:51.144,0:04:53.600 This is a frontline treatment[br]for hypertension. 0:04:53.600,0:04:56.274 Hypertension kills over 10 percent 0:04:56.274,0:04:58.458 of all deaths on the planet everyday. 0:04:58.458,0:05:00.542 This is a four billion dollar industry 0:05:00.542,0:05:02.734 based on venom from a Brazilian snake, 0:05:02.734,0:05:06.068 and the Brazilians did not get a nickel. 0:05:06.068,0:05:08.716 This is not an acceptable way 0:05:08.716,0:05:11.499 of doing business. 0:05:11.499,0:05:13.170 The rain forest has been called 0:05:13.170,0:05:14.908 the greatest expression of life on Earth. 0:05:14.908,0:05:16.206 There's a saying in Suriname 0:05:16.206,0:05:17.760 that I dearly love: 0:05:17.760,0:05:19.498 "The rain forests hold answers 0:05:19.498,0:05:23.265 to questions we have yet to ask." 0:05:23.265,0:05:25.822 But as you all know,[br]it's rapidly disappearing, 0:05:25.822,0:05:28.168 here in Brazil, in the Amazon, 0:05:28.168,0:05:29.485 around the world. 0:05:29.485,0:05:31.505 I took this picture from a small plane 0:05:31.505,0:05:34.353 flying over the eastern border[br]of the Xingu indigenous reserve 0:05:34.353,0:05:37.732 in the state of Mato Grosso[br]to the northwest of here. 0:05:37.732,0:05:39.335 The top half of the picture, 0:05:39.335,0:05:41.037 you see where the Indians live. 0:05:41.037,0:05:42.414 The line through the middle 0:05:42.414,0:05:44.761 is the eastern border of the reserve. 0:05:44.761,0:05:48.659 Top half Indians, bottom half white guys. 0:05:48.659,0:05:50.411 Top half wonder drugs, 0:05:50.411,0:05:53.996 bottom half just a bunch[br]of skinny-ass cows. 0:05:53.996,0:05:56.079 Top half carbon sequestered 0:05:56.079,0:05:57.714 in the forest where it belongs, 0:05:57.714,0:06:00.143 bottom half carbon in the atmosphere 0:06:00.143,0:06:02.766 where it's driving climate change. 0:06:02.766,0:06:05.034 In fact, the number two cause 0:06:05.034,0:06:07.573 of carbon being released[br]into the atmosphere 0:06:07.573,0:06:11.041 is forest destruction. 0:06:11.041,0:06:12.647 But in talking about destruction, 0:06:12.647,0:06:14.461 it's important to keep in mind 0:06:14.461,0:06:16.374 that the Amazon is the mightiest 0:06:16.374,0:06:18.158 landscape of all. 0:06:18.158,0:06:20.626 It's a place of beauty and wonder. 0:06:20.626,0:06:23.117 The biggest anteater in the world 0:06:23.117,0:06:25.065 lives in the rain forest, 0:06:25.065,0:06:27.738 tips the scale at 90 pounds. 0:06:27.738,0:06:29.909 The goliath bird-eating spider 0:06:29.909,0:06:31.747 is the world's largest spider. 0:06:31.747,0:06:34.418 It's found in the Amazon as well. 0:06:34.418,0:06:36.486 The harpy eagle wingspan 0:06:36.486,0:06:38.001 is over seven feet. 0:06:38.001,0:06:40.453 And the black cayman. 0:06:40.453,0:06:42.219 These monsters can tip the scale 0:06:42.219,0:06:43.928 at over half a ton. 0:06:43.928,0:06:46.858 They're known to be man-eaters. 0:06:46.858,0:06:49.648 The anaconda, the largest snake, 0:06:49.648,0:06:52.725 the capybara, the largest rodent. 0:06:52.725,0:06:54.037 A specimen from here in Brazil 0:06:54.037,0:06:57.733 tipped the scale at 201 pounds. 0:06:57.733,0:07:00.318 Let's visit where these creatures live, 0:07:00.318,0:07:01.864 the northeast Amazon, 0:07:01.864,0:07:03.563 home to the Akuriyo tribe. 0:07:03.563,0:07:05.336 Uncontacted peoples 0:07:05.336,0:07:09.531 hold a mystical and iconic role 0:07:09.531,0:07:11.211 in our imagination. 0:07:11.211,0:07:13.548 These are the people who know nature best. 0:07:13.548,0:07:15.159 These are the people who truly live 0:07:15.159,0:07:18.687 in total harmony with nature. 0:07:18.687,0:07:21.481 By our standards, some would[br]dismiss these people as primitive. 0:07:21.481,0:07:22.742 They don't know how to make fire, 0:07:22.742,0:07:25.244 or they didn't when they[br]were first contacted, 0:07:25.244,0:07:26.978 but they know the forest 0:07:26.978,0:07:28.773 far better than we do. 0:07:28.773,0:07:31.752 The Akuriyos have 35 words for honey, 0:07:31.752,0:07:33.502 and other Indians look up to them 0:07:33.502,0:07:35.357 as being the true masters 0:07:35.357,0:07:37.923 of the emerald realm. 0:07:37.923,0:07:40.162 Here you see the face of my friend Ponay. 0:07:40.162,0:07:41.815 When I was a teenager rocking out 0:07:41.815,0:07:44.709 to the Rolling Stones in my[br]hometown of New Orleans, 0:07:44.709,0:07:46.794 Ponay was a forest normad 0:07:46.794,0:07:49.291 roaming the jungles of[br]the northeast Amazon 0:07:49.291,0:07:50.911 in a small band, 0:07:50.911,0:07:52.531 looking for game, 0:07:52.531,0:07:54.626 looking for medicinal plants, 0:07:54.626,0:07:56.023 looking for a wife 0:07:56.023,0:07:58.301 in other small nomadic bands. 0:07:58.301,0:08:00.779 But it's people like these 0:08:00.779,0:08:02.712 that know things that we don't, 0:08:02.712,0:08:04.912 and they have lots of lessons 0:08:04.912,0:08:06.819 to teach us. 0:08:06.819,0:08:08.340 However, if you go into most 0:08:08.340,0:08:10.222 of the forests of the Amazon, 0:08:10.222,0:08:12.037 there are no indigenous peoples. 0:08:12.037,0:08:13.971 This is what you find: 0:08:13.971,0:08:17.120 rock carvings which indigenous peoples, 0:08:17.120,0:08:19.640 uncontacted peoples, used to sharpen 0:08:19.640,0:08:21.985 the edge of the stone axe. 0:08:21.985,0:08:23.622 These cultures that once danced, 0:08:23.622,0:08:26.203 made love, sang to the gods, 0:08:26.203,0:08:27.786 worshipped the forest, 0:08:27.786,0:08:29.964 all that's left is an imprint in stone, 0:08:29.964,0:08:31.744 as you see here. 0:08:31.744,0:08:34.004 Let's move to the western Amazon, 0:08:34.004,0:08:37.411 which is really the epicenter[br]of isolated peoples. 0:08:37.411,0:08:39.129 Each of these dots represents 0:08:39.129,0:08:41.422 a small, uncontacted tribe, 0:08:41.422,0:08:42.990 and the big reveal today is 0:08:42.990,0:08:46.381 we believe there are 14 or 15 isolated groups 0:08:46.381,0:08:50.262 in the Columbian Amazon alone. 0:08:50.262,0:08:52.004 Why are these people isolated? 0:08:52.004,0:08:54.421 They know we exist, they[br]know there's an outside world. 0:08:54.421,0:08:56.731 This is a form of resistance. 0:08:56.731,0:08:58.866 They have chosen to remain isolated, 0:08:58.866,0:09:02.439 and I think it is their[br]human right to remain so. 0:09:02.439,0:09:04.992 Why are these the tribes[br]that hide from man? 0:09:04.992,0:09:06.997 Here's why. Obviously some of this 0:09:06.997,0:09:09.225 was set off in 1492, 0:09:09.225,0:09:11.247 but at the turn of the last century 0:09:11.247,0:09:13.282 was the rubber trade. 0:09:13.282,0:09:14.722 The demand for natural rubber, 0:09:14.722,0:09:16.628 which came from the Amazon, 0:09:16.628,0:09:19.802 set off the botanical[br]equivalent of a gold rush. 0:09:19.802,0:09:21.678 Rubber for bicycle tires, 0:09:21.678,0:09:23.296 rubber for automobile tires, 0:09:23.296,0:09:25.047 rubber for zeppelins. 0:09:25.047,0:09:28.054 It was a mad race to get that rubber, 0:09:28.054,0:09:30.732 and the man on the left, Julio Arana, 0:09:30.732,0:09:33.799 is one of the true thugs of the story. 0:09:33.799,0:09:35.492 His people, his company, 0:09:35.492,0:09:37.594 and other companies like them 0:09:37.594,0:09:40.349 killed, massacred, tortured, 0:09:40.349,0:09:42.641 butchered Indians like the Witotos you see 0:09:42.641,0:09:45.836 on the right hand side of the slide. 0:09:45.836,0:09:48.081 Even today, when people[br]come out of the forest, 0:09:48.081,0:09:50.786 the story seldom has a happy ending. 0:09:50.786,0:09:53.906 These are Nukaks. They[br]were contacted in the '80s. 0:09:53.906,0:09:58.333 Within a year, everybody over 40 was dead. 0:09:58.333,0:10:00.095 And remember, these[br]are preliterate societies. 0:10:00.095,0:10:02.375 The elders are the libraries. 0:10:02.375,0:10:03.923 Every time a shaman dies, 0:10:03.923,0:10:07.042 it's as if a library has been burned down. 0:10:07.042,0:10:09.538 They have been forced off their lands. 0:10:09.538,0:10:11.841 The drug traffickers have taken over 0:10:11.841,0:10:13.756 the Nukak lands, 0:10:13.756,0:10:15.739 and the Nukaks live as beggars 0:10:15.739,0:10:19.791 in public parks in eastern Colombia. 0:10:19.791,0:10:21.361 From the Nukak lands, I want to take you 0:10:21.361,0:10:23.328 to the southwest, to the most spectacular 0:10:23.328,0:10:25.177 landscape in the world: 0:10:25.177,0:10:27.121 Chiribiquete National Park. 0:10:27.121,0:10:28.860 It was surrounded by three isolated tribes 0:10:28.860,0:10:30.291 and thanks to the Colombian government 0:10:30.291,0:10:31.646 and Colombian colleagues, 0:10:31.646,0:10:33.717 it has now expanded. 0:10:33.717,0:10:35.694 It's bigger than the state of Maryland. 0:10:35.694,0:10:39.655 It is a treasure trove[br]of botanical diversity. 0:10:39.655,0:10:42.090 It was first explored botanically in 1943 0:10:42.090,0:10:43.880 by my mentor, Richard Schultes, 0:10:43.880,0:10:46.870 seen here atop the Bell Mountain, 0:10:46.870,0:10:49.335 the sacred mountains of the Carajás? 0:10:49.335,0:10:52.066 And let me show you[br]what it looks like today. 0:10:52.066,0:10:53.725 Flying over Chiribiquete, 0:10:53.725,0:10:55.983 realize that these lost world[br]mountains are still lost. 0:10:55.983,0:10:58.358 No scientist has been atop them. 0:10:58.358,0:10:59.981 In fact, nobody has been[br]atop the Bell Mountain 0:10:59.981,0:11:02.340 since Schultes in '43, 0:11:02.340,0:11:03.952 and we'll end up here[br]with the Bell Mountain 0:11:03.952,0:11:07.070 just to the east of the picture. 0:11:07.070,0:11:10.050 Let me show you what it looks like today. 0:11:10.050,0:11:12.937 Not only is this a treasure[br]trove of botanical diversity, 0:11:12.937,0:11:15.715 not only is it home to[br]three isolated tribes, 0:11:15.715,0:11:17.503 but it's the greatest treasure trove 0:11:17.503,0:11:20.828 of pre-Colombian art in the world: 0:11:20.828,0:11:23.897 over 200,000 paintings. 0:11:23.897,0:11:25.611 The Dutch scientist Thomas van der Hammen 0:11:25.611,0:11:29.157 described this as the Sistine Chapel 0:11:29.157,0:11:32.421 of the Amazon rain forest. 0:11:32.421,0:11:34.641 But move from Chiribiquete[br]down to the southeast, 0:11:34.641,0:11:36.082 again in the Colombian Amazon. 0:11:36.082,0:11:37.554 Remember, the Colombian Amazon 0:11:37.554,0:11:39.312 is bigger than New England. 0:11:39.312,0:11:40.991 The Amazon's a big forest, 0:11:40.991,0:11:42.212 and Brazil's got a big part of it, 0:11:42.212,0:11:43.698 but not all of it. 0:11:43.698,0:11:45.286 Moving down to these two national parks, 0:11:45.286,0:11:47.435 Cahuinari and Puré 0:11:47.435,0:11:48.781 in the Colombian Amazon 0:11:48.781,0:11:51.819 — that's the Brazilian[br]border to the right — 0:11:51.819,0:11:53.843 it's home to several groups 0:11:53.843,0:11:56.207 of isolated and uncontacted peoples. 0:11:56.207,0:11:57.716 To the trained eye, you[br]can look at the roofs 0:11:57.716,0:12:00.087 of these maloccas, these longhouses, 0:12:00.087,0:12:01.728 and see that there's cultural diversity. 0:12:01.728,0:12:03.776 These are, in fact, different tribes. 0:12:03.776,0:12:06.340 As isolated as these areas are, 0:12:06.340,0:12:08.743 let me show you how the outside world 0:12:08.743,0:12:10.595 is crowding in. 0:12:10.595,0:12:13.316 Here we see trade and transport[br]increased in Putamayo. 0:12:13.316,0:12:16.096 With the diminishment of[br]the Civil War in Colombia, 0:12:16.096,0:12:19.148 the outside world is showing up. 0:12:19.148,0:12:21.120 To the north, we have illegal gold mining, 0:12:21.120,0:12:22.812 also from the east, from Brazil. 0:12:22.812,0:12:24.672 There's increased hunting and fishing 0:12:24.672,0:12:26.452 for commercial purposes. 0:12:26.452,0:12:29.509 We see illegal logging[br]come in from the south, 0:12:29.509,0:12:31.334 and drug runners are trying to move 0:12:31.334,0:12:34.370 through the park and get into Brazil. 0:12:34.370,0:12:37.128 This, in the past, is why you didn't mess 0:12:37.128,0:12:39.029 with isolated Indians, 0:12:39.029,0:12:40.613 and if it looks like this[br]picture is out of focus 0:12:40.613,0:12:43.899 because it was taken[br]in a hurry, here's why. 0:12:43.899,0:12:46.416 (Laughter) 0:12:46.416,0:12:52.303 This looks like — (Applause) 0:12:52.303,0:12:54.823 This looks like a hangar[br]from the Brazilian Amazon. 0:12:54.823,0:12:57.566 This is an art exhibit in Havana, Cuba. 0:12:57.566,0:12:59.413 A group called Los Carpinteros. 0:12:59.413,0:13:01.039 This is their perception[br]of why you shouldn't 0:13:01.039,0:13:04.094 mess with uncontacted Indians. 0:13:04.094,0:13:05.761 But the world is changing. 0:13:05.761,0:13:08.759 These are Mascoteros[br]on the Brazil-Peru border 0:13:08.759,0:13:10.460 who stumbled out of the jungle 0:13:10.460,0:13:12.414 because they were essentially chased out 0:13:12.414,0:13:14.792 by drug runners and timber people, 0:13:14.792,0:13:17.425 and in Peru, there's[br]a very nasty business. 0:13:17.425,0:13:19.245 It's called human safaris. 0:13:19.245,0:13:20.757 They will take you in 0:13:20.757,0:13:23.433 to isolated groups to take their picture. 0:13:23.433,0:13:24.813 Of course, when you give them clothes 0:13:24.813,0:13:25.831 then you give them tools,[br]you also give them diseases. 0:13:25.831,0:13:30.298 We call these "inhuman safaris." 0:13:30.298,0:13:32.166 These are Indians again on the Peru border 0:13:32.166,0:13:35.584 who were overflown by flights[br]sponsored by missionaries. 0:13:35.584,0:13:36.805 They want to get in there 0:13:36.805,0:13:38.544 and turn them into Christians. 0:13:38.544,0:13:40.840 We know how that turns out. 0:13:40.840,0:13:42.704 What's to be done? 0:13:42.704,0:13:45.080 Introduce technology[br]to the contacted tribes, 0:13:45.080,0:13:46.612 not the uncontacted tribes, 0:13:46.612,0:13:49.745 in a culturally sensitive way. 0:13:49.745,0:13:52.051 This is the perfect marriage 0:13:52.051,0:13:53.875 of ancient shamanic wisdom 0:13:53.875,0:13:56.717 and 21st century technology. 0:13:56.717,0:13:59.728 We've done this now with over 30 tribes, 0:13:59.728,0:14:02.652 mapped, managed, and increased protection 0:14:02.652,0:14:06.555 of over 70 million acres[br]of ancestral rain forest. 0:14:06.555,0:14:11.828 (Applause) 0:14:11.828,0:14:15.050 So this allows the Indians to take control 0:14:15.050,0:14:18.907 of their environmental[br]and cultural destiny. 0:14:18.907,0:14:20.566 They also then set up guard houses 0:14:20.566,0:14:22.572 to keep outsiders out. 0:14:22.572,0:14:25.211 These are Indians, trained[br]as indigenous park rangers, 0:14:25.211,0:14:26.867 patrolling the borders 0:14:26.867,0:14:30.238 and keeping the outside world at bay. 0:14:30.238,0:14:33.247 This is a picture of actual contact. 0:14:33.247,0:14:34.614 These are Chitanawa Indians 0:14:34.614,0:14:36.617 on the Brazil-Peru border. 0:14:36.617,0:14:38.321 They've come out of the jungle 0:14:38.321,0:14:40.062 asking for help. 0:14:40.062,0:14:41.468 They were shot at, 0:14:41.468,0:14:44.205 their maloccas, their [br]longhouses, were burned. 0:14:44.205,0:14:46.708 Some of them were massacred. 0:14:46.708,0:14:49.794 Using automatic weapons 0:14:49.794,0:14:53.207 to slaughter uncontacted peoples 0:14:53.207,0:14:55.276 is the single most despicable 0:14:55.276,0:14:56.788 and disgusting human rights abuse 0:14:56.788,0:14:59.671 on our planet today, and it has to stop. 0:14:59.671,0:15:06.205 (Applause) 0:15:06.205,0:15:08.928 But let me conclude by saying, 0:15:08.928,0:15:11.792 this work can be spiritually rewarding, 0:15:11.792,0:15:15.076 but it's difficult and[br]it can be dangerous. 0:15:15.076,0:15:17.538 Two colleagues of mine[br]passed away recently 0:15:17.538,0:15:19.903 in the crash of a small plane. 0:15:19.903,0:15:21.681 They were serving the forest 0:15:21.681,0:15:24.429 to protect those uncontacted tribes. 0:15:24.429,0:15:26.366 So the question is, in conclusion, 0:15:26.366,0:15:28.191 is what the future holds. 0:15:28.191,0:15:30.408 These are Uray people in Brazil. 0:15:30.408,0:15:31.969 What does the future hold for them, 0:15:31.969,0:15:34.640 and what does the future hold for us? 0:15:34.640,0:15:37.121 Let's think differently. 0:15:37.121,0:15:38.918 Let's make a better world. 0:15:38.918,0:15:40.836 If the climate's going to change, 0:15:40.836,0:15:42.357 let's have a climate that changes for 0:15:42.357,0:15:44.919 the better rather than for the worse. 0:15:44.919,0:15:48.084 Let's live on a planet 0:15:48.084,0:15:50.904 full of luxuriant vegetation, 0:15:50.904,0:15:53.010 in which isolated peoples 0:15:53.010,0:15:54.869 can remain in isolation, 0:15:54.869,0:15:57.212 can maintain that mystery 0:15:57.212,0:15:58.838 and that knowledge 0:15:58.838,0:16:00.533 if they so choose. 0:16:00.533,0:16:02.128 Let's live in a world 0:16:02.128,0:16:04.497 where the shamans live in these forests 0:16:04.497,0:16:07.441 and heal themselves and us 0:16:07.441,0:16:10.178 with their mystical plants 0:16:10.178,0:16:12.235 and their sacred frogs. 0:16:12.235,0:16:14.082 Thanks again. 0:16:14.082,0:16:18.001 (Applause)