Grandmother University
Spore hosts
Save the Date
Voices from the Rainforest
A Rainforest Conference
13. September 2026
14.00-20.00
14.00-20.00
Save the Date
For free
All ages welcome
in English
Join us on a journey into the rainforest. Experience its vastness and its beauty, and find out why the forests that remain intact lie mostly in Indigenous territories. Rainforests are home to half of the world's animal and plant species and to 1.6 billion people. People there speak hundreds of languages, and cultures thrive, from music to crafts. The rainforest also holds a precious store of Indigenous ecological knowledge.
Yet the rainforests are being cut down for palm oil, animal feed, raw materials, and paper. Protecting what remains is more urgent than ever, and our survival depends on it. It's time to heed the warnings from the rainforest. For 40 years, Rainforest Rescue has worked toward this goal, which is the purpose of our Rainforest Conference.
Indigenous people and rainforest defenders in front of a huge tree in in the rainforest of Borneo
In the Forest of the Dayak Tewoyan on Borneo
A young Ka'apor man among the vegetation in the rainforest of the Alto Turiacu Indigenous Territory, Maranhão, Brazil
Members of the Túumben K’óoben cooperative in Mexico on their rainforest property.
Campaign by the Dayak Tomun. Banner: “Indigenous People Are the Best Forest Guardians”2:00 – 4:00 pm
Rainforest Meet-up: First-hand Accounts and Experiences
Meet experienced rainforest defenders in a relaxed setting. Hear from Indigenous communities and activists from the Congo Basin, Southeast Asia, and the Amazon as they discuss their lives in the forest and their efforts to preserve it for all of us. Many of them risk their lives confronting logging companies. Learn what researchers are discovering there.
We will be joined by partners of Rainforest Rescue from three continents, including Timer Manurung from Indonesia, Lisa Mean from Cambodia, Odey Oyama from Nigeria, Felipe Duran from Brazil, who will be accompanied by a group of Indigenous residents of the Amazon.
Have a conversation with Prof. Dr. Barbara Fruth about protecting bonobos in the Congo Basin, with Dr. Annika Hillers about chimpanzees in Liberia, and with Dr. Bettina Grallert from the Phyllodrom rainforest museum about life in the rainforest.
In parallel, Abenteuer Regenwald e.V. will run hands-on activities for children and teenagers in and around Spore's Bewegungsbaustelle.
2:30pm – 3:00pm, Auditorium
Mother Nature Cambodia: Young Activists Putting their Freedom on the Line for Nature and Human Rights
In the auditorium, Lisa Mean of Mother Nature Cambodia, recipient of the 2023 Right Livelihood Award, will present a film about the young group’s fearless and creative actions against environmental destruction.
3:00 - 4:00pm, Auditorium
The Amazon: Human Rights and Traditional Peoples and Communities
Together with Rama, ACESA, CPT MA, MOQUIBOM, the National Campaign to Protect the Cerrado, and Save the Rainforest Brazil, our partners from the Brazilian state of Maranhão report on agroecology and the resistance against land grabbing and pesticide aerial spraying.
4:00 – 5:00pm, Atrium
Impressions: Images, Culture, Sounds, and Messages from the Rainforest
Featuring the artist Sol Okarina from Colombia and Venezuela.
5:00 – 7:00pm, Auditorium
Learning from Indigenous Practices: Voices from the Rainforest
Indigenous knowledges stems from a centuries-long tradition of living in harmony with rainforest regions and caring for and defending them. Activists and rainforest defenders from the Amazon, the Congo Basin, Nigeria, and Southeast Asia will speak about human rights, resistance, and the challenges facing their communities.
Panel discussion and dialogue, in English. Taking part are Rainforest Rescue and partners from the Amazon, Africa, and Southeast Asia (Lisa Mean, Timer Manurung, and Odey Oyama). We will stream the discussion live on YouTube.
Moderated by Kathrin Hartmann, author of Die grüne Lüge and Öl ins Feuer.
For 40 years, Rainforest Rescue has worked with 50 partner organizations worldwide to protect nature, in close cooperation with Indigenous communities. Join us, and meet the people who make the work possible.
