Speaking at the 12th Pan-Amazonian Social Forum, held in Puyo, Ecuador, the Salesian sister shared the challenges the gathering poses for Amazonian communities, the Church, and consecrated life, and highlighted the strength of women in defending their territories.
“Let us move into deeper waters and cast our nets to fish.” With this invitation, inspired by the Gospel, Sister Claudia Matos, a Daughter of Mary Help of Christians (Salesian) and Amazonian missionary from the state of Pará, Brazil, summarizes one of the main calls she takes away from the 12th Pan-Amazonian Social Forum (FOSPA), held in Puyo, Ecuador, from August 16 to 21, 2026.
The sister, a member of the BOLPEBRA Itinerant Team (Bolivia-Peru-Brazil), participated in the gathering as part of her missionary commitment in the Amazonian tri-border region. She currently lives in Cobija, Bolivia, from where she accompanies communities and peoples in this region of the Pan-Amazon.
For Sister Claudia, FOSPA was, above all, an experience of encountering the diversity of peoples, territories, and struggles across the Amazon. “It was an interesting experience, in the sense of meeting different peoples, learning about many realities, and understanding the struggles of many communities—especially those of women,” she stated during an interview conducted by the communications team of the Ecclesial Conference of the Amazon (CEAMA).
Women: Leaders in the Defense of Territories
One of the aspects that most impressed her during her participation was witnessing the leading role played by Amazonian women in defending their communities, rivers, and territories.
During FOSPA, Sister Claudia participated in the Thematic Forum on Rivers, a space where representatives from different countries shared experiences of resistance, community organization, and the defense of peoples’ rights.
The nun particularly highlighted the value of learning about experiences that have achieved concrete progress—even in the legal sphere—because they serve as models and a source of hope for other communities that continue to face threats and conflicts.
“It was very practical, in the sense of organizing the next steps to take and ensuring that the experiences, individuals, and groups that have already succeeded can support those who are still in the midst of struggle, confrontation, and threats,” she explained.
This practical dimension of the meeting allowed, in her view, for a shift from listening and sharing experiences to building strategies and support networks among those defending Amazonian territories.
“Why are they there and we aren’t?”
One of the challenges Sister Claudia takes away from FOSPA has the face of a woman—and, specifically, of Amazonian Indigenous women who still have limited participation in regional coordination forums.
The religious sister arrived at the meeting accompanied by two women from Bolivia, including an indigenous Tacana woman from the department of Pando. Their participation in FOSPA allowed them to recognize the importance of Amazonian peoples from this region having a more active presence in forums for dialogue and decision-making.
“They themselves realized that in Bolivia, the Altiplano was represented, and that ideally, Pando—which is part of the Amazon—should also be represented. And they asked themselves, ‘Why are they there and we aren’t?’” she explained.
For this reason, she considers it essential to strengthen processes of training, support, and grassroots participation so that indigenous women from Pando can have a more significant presence at future meetings.
“The challenge is to support these women, to enable them to participate—both in events like this one and at the grassroots level,” she noted. Her goal is clear: that at the next FOSPA, Pando may be represented by Indigenous women capable of making their own voices heard.
A Church Called to Stand “Side by Side with the People”
Based on her missionary experience, Sister Claudia recognizes significant progress in the Church’s presence in the Amazon, especially following the Synod for the Amazon. However, she also identifies challenges that require a deeper pastoral conversion.
“You can sense that there are people in various parts of this vast Amazon region who are committed and taking action, sometimes in silence, not very visible,” she stated.
At the same time, she warns that resistance persists within the Church itself to processes of renewal and openness. “There is another side of the Church that holds things back, that hinders these processes, that wants to live in traditionalism, in a life of comfort,” she said.
Faced with this reality, she considers it necessary to move toward a Church capable of more closely accompanying the struggles and hopes of the Amazonian peoples.
“We still have a long way to go in terms of our commitment, in standing side by side with the people, in their causes, and in defense of the Amazon,” she stated.
Building Networks So We Don’t Walk Alone
As a member of the Itinerant Team, Sister Claudia also identifies a challenge within the itinerant missionary experiences in the Amazon: strengthening coordination among the different teams and processes.
In her view, there are numerous initiatives working in different territories, but it is still necessary to move toward a true network of collaboration, exchange, and mutual support.
“There are teams operating in isolation, each in their own place. So, I believe the challenge for us, as the Itinerant Team, is to truly build a network with the other teams, to join forces,” she explained.
This challenge takes on special significance following FOSPA, where different groups were able to come together, share lessons learned, and recognize that many of the struggles faced in these territories stem from common causes.
A Consecrated Life That Goes Beyond Its Walls
One of Sister Claudia’s most powerful messages is directed at those in Consecrated Life in the Amazon.
Her call is to allow oneself to be challenged by the reality of the people and to move beyond models of religious life confined to structures, customs, and dynamics that can distance it from the communities.
“It means stepping outside that model of Consecrated Life within walls, away from the customs of the past, and opening the window a little, opening the door, and seeing the cry of the people who are right beside us in the Amazon,” she said.
For her, the Amazonian mission demands presence, listening, and closeness, especially in those territories where the Church’s institutional presence is still limited.
“Being on the rivers, in the communities, where sometimes the Church cannot reach,” is, in her view, an experience that can profoundly renew the missionary vocation.
An Amazon Under Threat, but Not Defeated
When referring to the current situation in the Brazilian Amazon, Sister Claudia described it as “delicate.” Beyond the electoral context, she pointed to the existence of structural threats linked to economic interests in the territories and their resources.
“The Amazon is under serious threat, highly coveted from all sides,” she stated, while also warning against rhetoric that can misinform and confuse the population.
However, in the face of this scenario, her outlook is not one of defeat. The nun sees the organization of indigenous communities as a fundamental source of hope.
“We cannot lose hope,” she affirmed. For her, gatherings like FOSPA demonstrate that there are numerous people and organizations committed to defending life and the territories.
“Seeing people come together at FOSPA, seeing people gathering in various places, people in the struggle—that renews the hope we need to have,” she said.
“We cannot let go of each other’s hands”
At the end of the interview, Sister Claudia left a message of hope and unity for the Church and the Amazonian peoples.
Her proposal stems from the recognition that no community or organization can face the enormous challenges facing the Pan-Amazon region alone.
“If we combine a little of one person’s strength with another’s, one person’s struggle with another’s, and one person’s knowledge with another’s, that becomes something great,” she affirmed.
For this reason, she urged us “not to let go of each other’s hands”—even in the midst of differences—and to seek out the points of unity that connect the Amazonian peoples across different countries.
In that quest, she also highlighted the importance of recovering the memory and ancestral wisdom of the peoples as a source of energy to continue defending life.
“One of our roles—for those of us participating in this FOSPA—is to leave here bringing more hope to the people,” she said.
Her final message encapsulates the spirit that, from her perspective, should inspire those working for the Amazon: “It’s possible. Let’s join hands. There are many people out there. Together we can do it”.
From Puyo, Sister Claudia Matos’s testimony reminds us that Amazonian hope is not a passive waiting, but a force built through community, the defense of territories, women’s participation, the coordination of networks, and a Church capable of walking alongside, listening to, and committing itself to the peoples.