The Achuar

Currently, the Achuar are organize in a federation named NAE (Achuar nationality of Ecuador) www.nacionalidadachaurecuador.org. Which is composed of 64 communities that represent approximately 6,000 Achuar who live in the territory of the Pastaza River basin, located in the Ecuadorian provinces of Pastaza and Morona Santiago? There are also Achuar people living on the Peruvian side of their territory, but they have their own organization to represent them. The Achuar are one of the indigenous peoples of the Amazon Basin who have inhabited the tropical rainforest for thousands of years. They are well-regarded for their vast knowledge about their physical environment, and are experts in land use and resource management, all of which has allowed both people and ecosystem to survive in balance.

The name Achuar comes from achu, the Jivaro name for the Morete palm tree which grows in flat and flooded regions, and the shuar word for "people". Thus, they are known as achu shuar ("people of Morete") or, in brief, Achuar.

The Achuar practice micro-scale "pioneering slash and burn cultivation", which means that they regularly establish new garden plots (known as "chakras") in areas of virgin forestage continually being established in areas of virgin forest. An average chakra can be used for a period of about 3 years before being left to cultivate a new plot.

Each family has one or more chakras, depending on the number of its members. Wherein diverse products are cultivated such as manioc (Manihot esculenta), bananas (Musa x balbisinia), sweet potatoes (Ipomea batata), hot chilies (Capsicum sp.), sugar cane (Saccharum officinarum), some wild species like palms (Chonta gasipaes and Mauritia flexuosa), guaba (Inga edulis), balsa trees (Ochroma pyramidale), and countless medicinal, narcotic, and other useful plants.

They live out of hunting, fishing and gathering in the rain forest. The Achuar's most important food and beverage is the nijiamanch, commonly known as Chicha. It is obtained by the fermentation of previously chewed manioc. Women are in charge of making and serving this drink to guests. Fishing and hunting are also essential for the provision of protein.