We Will be Jaguars: A Memoir of my People, by Nemonte Nenquimo
Born into the Waorani tribe of Ecuador’s Amazon rainforest—one of the last to be contacted by missionaries in the 1950s—Nemonte Nenquimo had a singular upbringing. She was taught about plant medicines, foraging, oral storytelling, and shamanism by her elders. At age fourteen, she left the forest for the first time to study with an evangelical missionary group in the city. Eventually, her ancestors began appearing in her dreams, pleading with her to return and embrace her own culture. She listened.
Two decades later, Nemonte has emerged as one of the most forceful voices in climate change activism. She has spearheaded the alliance of indigenous nations across the Upper Amazon and led her people to a landmark victory against Big Oil, protecting over a half million acres of primary rainforest. Her message is as sharp as a spear—honed by her experiences battling loggers, miners, oil companies and missionaries. In We Will Be Jaguars, she partners with her husband, Mitch Anderson, founder of Amazon Frontlines, digging into generations of oral history, uprooting centuries of conquest, hacking away at racist notions of indigenous peoples, and ultimately revealing a life story as rich, harsh, and vital as the Amazon rainforest herself. (Abram’s Books)
Nemonte Nenquimo is a Waorani woman, mother, and climate leader, who has dedicated her life to the defense of Indigenous ancestral territory and cultural survival in the Amazon rainforest. She is the co-founder of Ceibo Alliance and Amazon Frontlines, and has won the prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize. (amazonfrontlines.org)
Meeting Info
Wednesday July 2nd, 2025
6:30-8 PM
Virtual via Google Meet (link to join)
Email us at books@350pdx.org if you have any questions.
The 350PDX Climate Book Club is a place for anyone interested in the climate justice movement to come together and talk about the most important books of our time. We meet every month, usually the first Wednesday, from 6:30pm-8pm, and alternate between virtual and gathering in the 350PDX Office (although this sometimes changes, so doublecheck). We alternate between fiction and non-fiction.
