ICI Video | ICI Presents: When the River Speaks
When the River Speaks follows Maglin, a young Yine mother from the Peruvian Amazon, as she confronts the growing mercury contamination threatening her community along the Madre de Dios River. In 2025, she became the first Yine woman — and mother — to travel to a global negotiation of the Minamata Convention on Mercury, carrying the voice of her people all the way to Geneva.
Through her story, the film reveals how mercury pollution is not an abstract issue for Indigenous communities: it enters their rivers, their food, their bodies, and their futures.
With long-term, large-scale financing under the Inclusive Conservation Initiative (ICI), Yine communities are now strengthening territorial governance, training mercury monitors, gathering evidence for public health, and preparing youth and women to advocate for policies that protect their lands and waters.
Maglin’s journey shows what becomes possible when Indigenous peoples are not invited simply to inspire — but to be heard, prepared, and resourced.
ICI is funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and implemented by Conservation International and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) with Indigenous partners across 12 countries.
The Inclusive Conservation Initiative (ICI) is funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and co-implemented by Conservation International (CI) and IUCN.
Follow on Instagram @ipsleadnature
Engage on X @ipsleadnature
