#61 Rocio Alarcon on Master Plants, Traditional Healing of Ecuador, and Hummingbirds

Pacific Rim College Radio

Ecuador is a wonderland of botanical diversity and tradition, and Rocio Alarcon takes us on a plant-based journey through its jungles, people, and ceremonies. Rocio is an incredibly grounded and gifted protector of land and ancestral knowledge.

With a doctorate in Ethnopharmacology, she is the founder of the IAMOE Center, a 100-hectare region of biodiversity with a dedicated team that leads research projects, educational expeditions, and experimental workshops aimed at healing and land and knowledge preservation.

Rocio specializes in work with master plants, and we examine what it means to be a master plant. We explore examples such as cacao, tobacco, and ayahuasca and how each is used in special healing ceremonies, especially by curanderos, traditional healers who journey with master plants. Rocio provides fascinating detail of ceremonies with these plants and how they are woven into the fabric of indigenous people.

We also discuss the environmental challenges that are facing her people and the work she is doing to protect the jungles. Some of her conservation work is centred around hummingbirds, and we talk at length about the magical healing powers of hummingbirds, their endangered habitat, and the work IAMOE is doing to bring awareness to them and preserve their territories.

Rocio is a powerful storyteller and brings the listener into a world of healing that is hanging on by tendrils to survive in this modern period of scientific and economic ‘progress’ that uproots all in its path. She is a beacon of hope and a staunch protector of traditional values and knowledge. If you are looking for a planetary champion to support, Rocio might soon climb to the top of your list.

Please enjoy this episode of Pacific Rim College Radio with Dr. Rocio Alarcon.

Episode Links:

IAMOE Center

Hummingbird Oracle Cards

Rosemary Gladstar

Learning Links:

School of Western Herbal Medicine at PRC

Online Herbal Medicine courses at PRCOnline

Student Clinic at PRC