During my summer internship I worked at Cultural Survival, a non-profit organization in Cambridge, Massachusetts that devotes its time to protecting indigenous cultures throughout the world. Indigenous cultures are those that have lived on their land well before the age of settlers, conquistadors and pilgrims. Many of these populations were not contacted as late as the second half of the nineteenth century. Unfortunately recent history for most indigenous tribes has included genocide, re-settlement, disease, invasion from transnational corporations, or even the abuse of their land for military testing. These atrocities continue today, mostly for the benefit of the modern world, which includes all students at Connecticut College.

I decided to participate in the internship program at Cultural Survival with the hopes of educating myself further on past successes and failures within the indigenous movement. Although my heart lies within the environmental movement and its up-hill battles, I understand the inter-connectedness between both movements. The destruction of the natural environment is the destruction of many indigenous communities as well.

An Anthropology major at Connecticut College, I have also been introduced to the beautiful complexities of indigenous cultures and have grown to fear the homogenization of world westernization. With an interest in possibly attending graduate school in Anthropology, I was eager to learn as much as possible about the fascinating cultures of our world and the process of studying them. Cultural Survival was highly recommended both for the quality of its publications and the intelligence of its staff. Cultural Survival also has a wonderful internship program that features field-trips to meet with local indigenous leaders and weekly lunches/discussions with experts in issues ranging from the genocide in Rwanda to the importance of fair trade coffee.

Cultural Survival has a tough agenda, however it goes about the process very methodically. It sponsors basic research on indigenous peoples - who they are, where they are, what problems they face and what solutions have been developed for them. It carries out this research with the aid of a network of indigenous collaborators and pro-indigenous scholars. The results of this research are published in the Cultural Survival Quarterly, a seasonal magazine, which is one of the leading journals of indigenous affairs in the USA. Cultural Survival also sponsors an education program, which seeks to inform students and the public at large about indigenous issues and their significance for us all.

One of the most positive things happening at Cultural Survival is the ability of staff to continuously change their approaches. Currently, they are developing new strategies for responding directly to the critical needs of the world's indigenous populations. They are analyzing and publicizing examples of how indigenous people have successfully responded to serious crises, as have for example the Secoya of Ecuador, the James Bay Cree of Quebec, the Maori of New Zealand or the Bininy of Australia. These case studies are now the central issues of Cultural Survival's research, education and advocacy program. They are discussed in different media including conferences and publications. They are also analyzed by indigenous leaders and specialists as well as by others who have made a special study of the situations of indigenous groups.

My greatest personal achievement at Cultural Survival was researching the communication between tribes in Labrador, Canada and Sulawesi, Indonesia. P.T. International Nickel Indonesia (PT Inco), a major transnational mining company, has devastated the land and people in Sulawesi. Most of the island's indigenous people have not been recompensed. In a gesture rarely seen by indigenous groups, two men from Sulawesi traveled to Labrador to meet with the Innu tribe whose land is highly sought after by the same company. This communication turned into a success story, as both tribes were able to share information regarding the company's use of their land and organized to stop further degradation. My research was published in the fall, 2000 edition of the Quarterly.

Currently, I am studying in Ecuador, South America where I can see first hand the devastation that has been done to the indigenous populations. Ecuador has the highest rate of deforestation of any Andean country. Indigenous peoples have been forced off their land for hundreds of years for oil, and for land to graze cattle or to build homes for settlers. Fortunately, they still have a few tribes that maintain their traditional ways. For my independent study project, I will be heading into the rain forest for a month to work with the Chachi Indians. I will be helping with ethnographic research, alternative development projects and a campaign trying to convince the government to allow indigenous sponsored development projects. I believe most indigenous groups still living on ancestral land should have the power to control how it is used. Unfortunately, the history of Ecuador's economy has always been to rely on the natural resources found on indigenous land. This is evident today as its struggling economy depends heavily on its oil reserves to pull it out of a depression.