Founded in 1999, AMAN is the world’s largest alliance of Indigenous peoples and aims to protect their identity and livelihoods. Its membership includes 2422 communities and 20 million individuals. With a population of approximately 250 million, Indonesia is home to 50-70 million Indigenous peoples. Despite Indonesia’s constitution recognizing their rights, there has never been an overarching law passed to protect them, leaving this population vulnerable to various threats.

AMAN’s work is centered around four main areas:

1. Policy advocacy to support Indigenous peoples
2. Land mapping as a way to delineate ancestral domains.
3. Utilizing art, music, and films to promote Indigenous peoples’ culture and traditions
4. Supporting the independence and livelihoods of Indigenous communities through economic activities and cooperatives

In addition to these areas of work, AMAN has established 82 education processes that center around Indigenous knowledges. These initiatives are aimed at promoting the understanding and appreciation of Indigenous peoples’ cultures, traditions, and ways of life. AMAN has also established 108 community-level Emergency Response Units to provide frontline emergency support to Indigenous communities in times of crisis.
 
Cover photography by Ayşe Gürsöz