For generations, Gualinga’s family has looked to the land to receive ancestral wisdom, and she has looked to them. Among them was Gualinga’s grandfather, Sabino Gualingo, who passed away in February 2022, leaving behind a legacy of rainforest connection and protection and a deep respect for nature and its people. In 2011, he gained international attention for his testimony before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in Costa Rica, where he explained the idea of the “living forest” and helped win a ruling in favor of his community. “I cannot put into words what this loss means to me and my family and how much it hurts to let go,” Gualinga wrote in an Instagram post after his passing. “But his teachings, his wisdom, his songs, his stories, his love, his spirit, and legacy will live forever.”
