Hahku, which means let's go in Kichwa, is an organization that is dedicated to promoting sustainable development projects in league with small indigenous communities within the Ecuadorian Amazon. The idea of founding The Hakhu Project came from years of its founder Leo Cerda working in advocacy with indigenous communities in the Ecuadorian Amazon. Communities face imminent threats from transnational companies and governmental departments over the demand for, and extraction of, our natural resources. Hahku is a grassroots indigenous organization directly implementing local programs and projects to help mitigate these threats.

Featured on Newsweek we take a look at how traditional art is fueling sustainable development versus oil companies. The biggest problem these communities face in the Ecuadorian Amazon are continuing extraction of natural resources and the fossil fuel industry. These practices lead to further deforestation and force marginalised communities to move away from their ancestral territories where they face discrimination and poverty as new, and often unwilling, urban dwellers.Through enabling community-based economic initiatives they believe they believe they can help to change this destructive cycle and generate positive social change while protecting territories and the planet. In order to accomplish their mission they wish to work integrally, from the bottom up, in four fundamental areas: Education, Health, the Generation of Sustainable Income, and Advocacy.

Hahku's mission is to empower indigenous communities in order to protect rainforests and ancestral knowledge for future generations. Their first project, featured in this video is Hakhu Amazon Design. The initiative aims to provide a unique opportunity to indigenous women in the Ecuadorian Amazon and beyond to utilise cultural and artistic heritage in such a way as to protect territories while providing them with a sustainable source of income through selling unique bespoke handcrafts via an online platform.