Health in Harmony

Brazil: in 2020, hih began working directly with communities to protect 1.6 million hectares, with an indirect impact on 9.1 million hectares in the xingu basin. Amazonian communities have been shown to be effective buffers against forest loss, and their presence in forests is a major deterrent to land encroachment. To stay on this land and defend the amazon rainforest against degradation, xingu communities designed solutions focused on accessible healthcare, livelihood, and territorial governance support. After three years of working alongside indigenous and riverine communities hih started strategically expanding community-designed healthcare and forest economy into new territories within the xingu basin. In 2024, sama health in harmony achieved official incorporation in brazil, marking a significant milestone in its evolution as a leading planetary health entity. The apyterewa indigenous territory has been at the forefront of hihs scale efforts in 2024, where indigenous communities designed solutions to address the dual challenges of illegal occupation and environmental degradation. Hih also expanded its efforts to other territories, including cachoeira seca, where communities mapped key species and revitalized traditional cultural practices, and xipaya, where investments in the forest economy tied sustainable livelihoods to rainforest conservation. Araraiboia was selected as a fifth site, emphasizing the importance of indigenous leadership in planetary health.panama: in 2024, health in harmony, funded by idb labs, advanced a three-year initiative to boost community-designed, nature-based business models by developing indigenous-led businesses across four communities in panamas darien region, integrating knowledge with advanced tolls to promote biodiversity conservation and ecological resilience. Nearly 2,500 indigenous communities are protecting tropical rainforest through eco-tourism and reforestation, conservation efforts while addressing challenges of regional migration.