As gang violence soars and the country’s jails overflow, Daniel Noboa has vowed to build more high-security facilities in remote areas. But local communities fear for their ancestral lands – and their own safety

Walking along a path his grandfather once used, Donald Cabrera, a villager from Bajada de Chanduy, on the coast of Ecuador, points out different trees and their uses. Talking about the imposing ceibo trees, he praises the fluffy white kapok fibre that falls from their branches, which his ancestors used for mattresses. From the guasango tree, he highlights the tough wood that people used to make floors and tables for their houses – and even coffins.

The tropical dry forest on Pacific coast, full of bare tree branches and yellowing leaves, is bursting with life and resources, though it may not seem like it. For locals such as Cabrera, it is not only a unique ecosystem but also the repository of ancestral knowledge.