A participatory certification label

In the Ecuadorian Amazon, a chakra is not just a simple farm plot: it is a living, biodiverse space where food security and sovereignty, forest conservation and the Kichwa Indigenous Peoples’ worldview converge. The Amazonian Chakra system involves growing crops organically and sustainably alongside trees and plants, thereby protecting biodiversity and the Amazonian forests.

However, although their farming practices are climate-resilient, these families lacked a formal traceability mechanism to guarantee their sustainability. This limited their visibility and hindered access to different markets.

To address this, the Corporation of Associations of the Amazonian Chakra (Corporación de Asociaciones de la Chakra Amazónica – also known as Corporation Chakra and comprising of five grassroots organisations representing 1,285 producers) – launched the Chakra Seal, a Participatory Guarantee System (PGS).

PGS certification is not a traditional commercial label: as a community-led, low-cost alternative to third-party organic certification, it is a climate-resilience tool structured around nine principles rooted in cultural identity. Among these principles are the Indigenous worldview, agroecological management, high biodiversity, women’s leadership and, fundamentally, an Amazonian landscape resilient to climate change.

Forest and Farm Facility activities

Forest and Farm Facility (FFF) support helped to scale up this system. FFF funded the digitisation of traceability and the standardisation of the Chakra Seal’s accreditation protocols.

However, the greatest value of this support was that it gave Corporation Chakra autonomy: by managing the funds directly and independently, they avoided severe bureaucratic delays that would have occurred if the process had depended on state funds. Indigenous organisations took full control of their certification.

Significance of impact

Growth has been exponential and sustained. When the collaboration with FFF began in 2021, just 1,185 hectares were part of the certification process, driven by three pioneering organisations: Kallari, Tsatsayaku and Wiñak. By 2025, the impact at the landscape scale was significant: the strictly certified area reaches 3,199 hectares under sustainable agroforestry management by Corporation Chakra.

The network of accredited organisations has tripled. Currently, ten community organisations hold the Chakra Seal: Ally Guayusa, Asoamazonas, Asowaoca, Guayusa Ruku Kawsay, Indi, Kallari, Tsatsayaku, Urco Muyo, Waylla Kuri and Wiñak.

But FFF support has gone beyond certifying raw materials by also funding the protocol to award the seal to value-added products. Thanks to FFF support, the certification now covers eight supply chains and partner brands (such as Jungle Blends and Witoca, in addition to the associations’ own brands) and has forged partnerships with three strategic private companies: Guya SA, Mamano Chocolate and Pachakuti Cacao.

In terms of women’s leadership and empowerment, FFF and Corporation Chakra support 760 certified women producers who are culturally recognised as ‘chakramamas’ (women of the chakra). These chakramamas are leading decisions on crop management, species association and water resource conservation, applying their ancestral knowledge to ensure food sovereignty in times of climate crisis.

Conclusion

With FFF support, the Chakra Seal provides producers with a formal traceability mechanism that guarantees the sustainability of their products, promoting both their visibility and access to differentiated markets and ultimately increasing incomes.

Meanwhile, the social and demographic impact of the Chakra Seal proves that it is more than just a commercial label: it is a climate-resilience tool rooted in cultural identity that encompasses Indigenous worldviews, sustainability and supports women’s leadership.

A participatory certification label

Forest and Farm Facility activities

Significance of impact

Conclusion

Further reading