Along the Rhône with the Kogi: Between Reclaiming Land and Reviving Memory

For nearly 30 years, Tchendukua has been building cooperative ties with the Kogi people—an indigenous community of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta in Colombia—focusing particularly on the restitution and regeneration of their territories and on a dialogue between traditional and scientific knowledge.
In 2023, a territorial health assessment was conducted along the Rhône, from its source to its delta, combining ancestral knowledge with scientific approaches. This initiative brought together researchers, naturalists, and local stakeholders around a shared question: how can we better understand and care for the territories we inhabit?
In the fall of 2026, a new Kogi delegation will return to Switzerland to further this work.
This conference aims to reflect on this experience and open a dialogue between disciplines and worldviews, using the Rhône as a living territory.

Speakers

Opening remarks: René Longet, politician and author committed to sustainability issues
Closing remarks: Gunter Pauli, entrepreneur and author of The Blue Economy
With the participation of:
– Geneviève Morand, founder and honorary president of Tchendukua Suisse and Rezonance
– Claire Laurant, anthropologist and ethnobotanist
– Gilles Mulhauser, biologist and ecologist
– Abdeljalil Akkari, University of Geneva
– Nathalie Muller Mirza, University of Geneva
– Jean-Paul Rouiller, chronicler of the Agaunois region

Practical Information

Thursday, April 30, 2026, 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM, followed by a social gathering (apple juice)
University of Geneva, Room MR 080, Boulevard du Pont-d’Arve 40, Geneva
Free admission, registration required

For more information and to register:

https://tchendukua.ch/au-fil-du-rhone-avec-les-kogis-entre-reappropriation-du-territoire-et-reveil-de-la-memoire/