In the north of Colombia, La Guajira is an area of severe contrast. Famed for its dramatic wind gusts and stunning indigenous culture, this region is at the same time one of the country’s poorest, historically suffering from exclusion and discrimination by the establishment. Wind farms have recently started sprouting in this region, and the Guajira 1 wind farm is paving the way. This is a major step in Colombia’s transition to renewable energy. This transition brings both promise and challenges for the Wayuu indigenous group, who have called this land home for generations.
As a native of La Guajira, our fellow citizen José Luis Iguarán saw these transformations up close. Indeed, the Guajira 1 wind farm is just a few yards from his home. It is one of just two operational wind farms in Colombia. The industrial turbines now spin gracefully on the barge’s deck against that vibrant sky. Iguarán speaks out against these projects to raise awareness about their harm to his community and their way of life.
La Guajira, as this state is known, is home to nearly 380,000 Wayuu, an indigenous group that spills across the border into Venezuela. The Wayuu have a vibrant and diverse culture characterized by unique customs and spirituality. Central to their identity are the eight winds — mythological and ancestral beings who serve critical roles in governing and crafting their environment. Per Wayuu tradition, “the winds are human beings.” This view illustrates the humanistic component of valuing respect towards these humanistic and natural elements.
Despite the clean energy produced by wind farms like Guajira 1, the benefits are not felt equally across the community. Aaron Laguna, a Wayuu leader, articulates the disconnect: “The worst thing is we won’t receive even a single kilowatt of the electricity produced here.” He highlights how local negotiations often fall short, leaving the community without proper compensation or involvement in decision-making processes surrounding the wind farms.
These renewable energy projects brought substantial divisions among Wayuu communities. Laguna explains that although windfarms do bring an urgently needed clean energy source, they are causing new divisions between families and neighbors. “Bad negotiations are made, and the resources given [to us] aren’t well managed by locals,” he states, underscoring concerns about transparency and accountability.
Today, La Guajira has emerged as one of the leaders in Colombia’s transition from fossil fuels to clean, renewable energy sources. Currently under construction are 15 new wind farms and scores more are in various planning stages. This rapid development raises significant questions, particularly in terms of sustainability. This is in no way more apparent than in a region still dealing with the ravages of poverty and marginalization.
José Luis Iguarán articulates his experience living near the turbines: “You wake up and suddenly you no longer see the trees. Instead, you see and hear the turbines.” This destruction of the cultural landscape has shattered the civic, aesthetic, and cultural reminders that embodied the region’s history. Today, it has irrevocably changed the community’s cultural landscape. At night, Iguarán notes that “the noise from the turbines disturbs our dreams. For us, dreams are sacred.” This concern is emblematic of a larger worry amongst the Wayuu—how to preserve their cultural identity in an age of increasing development.
Photos by Matias Llorente Joanna Barney, an advocate for sustainable development who resides in La Guajira, cautions against exaggerating the potential upsides of renewable energy. “There is still this idea that if it is green, it is automatically good,” she remarks. Whatever the case, this view makes it critical that we start looking at social impacts in tandem with the environmental gains.
These intersecting tensions between renewable energy projects and indigenous rights underscore an urgent need for these conversations and a greater understanding. Wieldler Guerra, another community member, captures this sentiment: “There are two worlds talking, and they have not managed to understand each other.” This silencing of indigenous protest speaks to broader issues of what happens when ancestral wisdom meets 21st century industrial production.