Ecuador

The Tagaeri-Taromenane Intangible Zone (ZITT) was established in 1999 by the Ecuadorian government as a strictly protected area within Yasuní National Park in the Ecuadorian Amazon. Its purpose is to safeguard indigenous peoples in voluntary isolation and preserve their territories. The zone covers approximately 758,000 hectares of tropical rainforest, one of the most biodiverse regions on Earth.

Within the ZITT live the Tagaeri and Taromenane peoples, two Waorani indigenous groups who maintain a traditional way of life and remain voluntarily isolated from Western society. Ecuador officially recognises 14 indigenous peoples in isolation and initial contact, among a total of more than 17 indigenous peoples across the country.

The Waorani community of Bameno, located at the edge of the ZITT, has around 500 members and is one of the few communities that has recently begun to open to tourism, initiating a controlled and respectful interaction with visitors.

This territory and its peoples face enormous external pressures: oil extraction, illegal mining, deforestation and natural resource exploitation threaten the integrity of the Amazon, endangering both the ecosystem and ancestral cultures.