Thirteen Soka University of America (SUA) students stepped off a boat into the Kambeba Indigenous community near Manaus, Brazil, in August to begin conversations that would reshape how they see humanity’s relationship with nature. Their weeklong Amazon study tour launched more than an academic partnership—it offered an unfiltered look at environmental challenges in one of Earth’s most biodiverse regions.
The tour marked the launch of SUA’s partnership with the Soka Amazon Institute after SUA President Edward Feasel signed a memorandum of understanding with the institute last year. The Soka Institute for Global Solutions (SIGS) sponsored the intensive noncredit experience, covering all costs to ensure accessibility regardless of students’ financial means.
Through its close relationships with local communities, environmental organizations and research institutions, the Soka Amazon Institute organized the tour activities, providing a translator when needed. Ian Read, professor of Latin American studies and senior research fellow at SIGS, facilitated the tour, grounding the experience in the dialogue-based learning that is fundamental to a liberal arts education at SUA.
Read explained that the tour had three main goals: to foster leadership, ethical responsibility and the creative coexistence between nature and humanity. The third goal, which is one of the founding principles of SUA, also plays a central role in the mission of the Soka Amazon Institute. It also provided the philosophical question at the heart of the tour: What is our relationship with nature, and how can we coexist with it responsibly?
“One of the biggest problems leading to the climate crisis we have now,” Read said, “is considering humanity as superior to and separate from nature. That’s not just leading to the depletion of biodiversity, but it’s also harming ourselves.” There is a lot to learn, he said, from indigenous cultures around the world who have maintained a harmonious relationship with their environment. These communities are often the most seriously impacted by climate disasters that are caused by unsustainable practices elsewhere in the world.
Learning About Sustainability From Multiple Perspectives
In planning the tour, Read and the SIGS team drew inspiration from the 16 principles of the Earth Charter, which approaches sustainability holistically and recognizes its intersections with a range of other global issues.
The tour’s packed itinerary covered sustainability from many angles, immersing students in questions related to ecology, education, social justice, economic inequality and natural resource management. At the Soka Amazon Institute, students interviewed experts on the staff and participated in a workshop that taught children from the city of Manaus about deforestation. At the National Institute of Amazonian Research (INPA), students took part in a roundtable about biodiversity and social technology. They also enhanced their knowledge of the region’s ecology through a tour of INPA’s entomology collection and Bosque da Ciencia, a park created to educate the public about the unique flora and fauna of the Amazon rainforest.
One of the most impactful experiences for students was their two-day visit to the Kambeba Indigenous community, located about an hour away from Manaus by boat. Here, students conversed with tribal elders, who shared their deep knowledge about specific plants and the broader ecosystem during a guided walk through the forest. Students also learned about Kambeba culture and food systems in hands-on craft and cuisine workshops. Perhaps most meaningful, however, was the opportunity to have in-person conversations with community members about how their lives have been impacted by climate change.
“Having face-to-face dialogue with people and seeing the environment really gives you a sense of urgency,” Mareva Dijoux, from the class of ’26 said. “When you talk with people and ask questions, you can really understand the things that could be of support to them and the ways that you can help.”
The tour also visited the Catalao community, a floating fishing village that has suffered from extreme heat and a lack of safe drinking water. Being on site and talking with locals helped Bidisha Kaphle, class of ‘26, contextualize these daily challenges and think about how government policy can support communities like Catalao. This experience has inspired her to use her background in political science to work on closing the gap between policy and community needs in her homeland.
In future study tours, Read plans to increase the number of opportunities for reflection and discussion, allowing for even more meaningful moments of exchange. As the Brazil collaboration project faculty liaison, he is also working to strengthen SUA’s connection with universities in Manaus, which could provide more learning experiences for tour participants in future years.
Go to soka.edu for more information.
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