In the dry forest of the north west Peru, at the foot of the Andes Cordillera, in a poor and arid region, stands Mount Chaparri.
Subduing their awe of the ancestral spirits of the mountain, a farming community of 500 families decided to take their destinies into their own hands.

After decades of intensive deforestation and mining, the community declared itself an “ecological community”, transforming its former hunting grounds into a reserve, where threatened species, such as the spectacled bear, the white winged guan and the Andean condor were reintroduced and protected.

With their enthusiasm and tenacity, and thanks to a providential encounter with a native nature photographer who also had a desire to do something for nature, the “comuneros” obtained support from American and European scientists. They managed to stand up to the big mining companies who still wanted the land.

The development of ecotourism in this little known region, allowed them to improve their conditions. The revenue from the reserve is in priority for education and health services in the community’s hamlets.

Convinced that the preservation of the environment was the only viable future for the region… and for the world, the comuneros threw themselves into ecological agriculture, organic beekeeping, replanting, water recycling and using renewable energy.

Today, the comuneros, sometimes in the course of adventurous bear rescues, multiply their meetings with other north Peruvian communities, in the dry forest, and in the Amazonian Andes. They try to incite them to follow their example, with the idea of creating an ecological corridor, entirely managed by the local populations.

The film follows the incredible story of these farmers, determined to leave their children a better world, whilst at the same time, calming the spirits of Mount Chaparri.