Saraguro (Equador), 1950

By Angel Bonilla

Ecuadorian indigenous from the Saraguro people, of the Quichua nation. With a charismatic personality, he stood out as one of the main historical leaders of the Ecuadorian indigenous movement, and is one of the creators and founders of the largest and most representative indigenous organization in the country, the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (Conaie), founded in 1986. He studied law, anthropology, and linguistics. He was elected national congressman in 1996, by the political movement Pachakutik. He was also Minister of Agriculture during the political alliance with the Patriotic Society in the early months of 2003; in 2004, he returned to preside over Conaie. He was the creator and first rector of the Amawtai Wasi Intercultural University of Nationalities and Indigenous Peoples (House of Knowledge).

Macas Ambuludi advocates for an indigenous movement detached from what he calls the bad practices of politics. With the crisis of capitalism, according to him, it is necessary to seek the wisdom of ancestral peoples to rescue new generations.