Funding Indigenous Heritage: ROOTS Backs Traditions in Africa & South America

ROOTS Fellowship Foundation announces funding for four new projects to safeguard Indigenous spiritual traditions in Colombia, Kenya, and Gabon. Fiscally sponsored by Modern Spirit, a registered 501(c)(3) organization, ROOTS supports education initiatives and community-led healing programs designed to keep ancestral knowledge rooted in local governance and cultural integrity.

ROOTS — an acronym for Reviving Our Origins, Traditions & Spirit — was established by three co-founders: Salome Augustine Bissa Kopasz, Krisztian Kopasz, and Marvin Vivas Rodriguez. Based on personal experience in Cameroon, Hungary, and Colombia, the founders believe vital healing traditions are rapidly disappearing.

“In Africa, when an elder passes away, a library burns. My grandmother was the medicine woman and leader of her village. When she died, there was no one to carry her role forward. ROOTS exists to change that story — not just for her community, but for every lineage at risk.”

— Salome Kopasz, Co-Founder & Executive Director

ROOTS’ work is urgent due to a global reality: about 1,500 Indigenous languages and their knowledge are at risk of disappearing. The communities that speak these languages collectively steward 40% of the world’s remaining intact forests, yet their knowledge keepers face what international observers have described as a grave risk of physical and cultural extermination.

ROOTS addresses this crisis by empowering elders, spiritual leaders, and their chosen successors with resources. Rather than introducing outside frameworks, the Foundation works from within each community. Each supported project identifies a lineage holder and their apprentice, covering basic living and educational costs to allow full immersion in spiritual training — a years-long commitment that, by its nature, cannot be combined with conventional employment.

“These traditions are not museum pieces. They are living systems of healing that entire communities depend on. We are here to ensure the next generation of lineage holders can actually do their work.”

— Marvin Vivas Rodriguez, Co-Founder

ACTIVE PROJECTS

The four community-led programs span Africa and South America:

Inga Community — Putumayo, Colombia

Traditional wisdom workshops are held monthly for 40–50 students in midwifery, traditional arts, and medicinal preparation. Sessions take place alongside communal Yagé ceremonies conducted by Taitas from both the High and Low Putumayo.

Arhuaco Community — Sasaima, Colombia

This initiative supports Mamo Lorenzo Izquierdo, an internationally recognized Arhuaco spiritual leader, and funds the complete training of his son as the community’s future Mamo — a lifelong vocation demanding total dedication and offering no conventional income.

Duruma Community — Kwale County, Kenya

Focused on protecting the Duruma Kaya lineage and its sacred forest traditions, this project supports mganga Baba Mwatela Masai and his successor daughter, Sipi Mwatela, through her multi-year apprenticeship encompassing healing drums, herbal knowledge, and ceremonial practice.

Y’azo Leyissa Academy — Bilandzambi, Gabon

Founded by Yorick Ossavou Mombo, who credits traditional Gabonese medicine with his own recovery from addiction, this ancestral knowledge academy offers 11 preparatory modules in ritual practice, plant knowledge, and Iboga medicine to 25 students per academic year.

ROOTS Fellowship Foundation is currently accepting donations through its fiscal sponsor, Modern Spirit. All contributions are tax-deductible for U.S. donors. To support a project or learn more, visit www.rootsfellowshipfoundation.org.

ABOUT ROOTS FELLOWSHIP FOUNDATION

ROOTS Fellowship Foundation is a nonprofit organization committed to the preservation of Indigenous spiritual lineages through community-led healing and education. Operating under the fiscal sponsorship of Modern Spirit (501(c)(3)), ROOTS funds initiatives that keep ancestral wisdom alive, locally governed, and available to future generations. Learn more at www.rootsfellowshipfoundation.org.

ABOUT MODERN SPIRIT

Modern Spirit is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization serving as fiscal sponsor for ROOTS Fellowship Foundation. All donations are fully tax-deductible. A 5% administrative fee is retained for oversight and reporting. Learn more at modernspirit.org.