Introduction Salmon skin leather is an eco-friendly, innovative, and surprisingly luxurious material made from the by-products of the fishing industry. What was once discarded as waste has now become a symbol of sustainable fashion and design. The leather, made from the skin of salmon fish, combines strength, flexibility, and a unique scaly texture that resembles exotic leathers such as snake or lizard skin—yet it’s cruelty-free and environmentally conscious. In recent years, salmon leather has gained global recognition as an ethical alternative in the luxury goods market, being used by high-end designers, sustainable brands, and even car interiors. Origin and History The use of fish skin as leather is not new. Indigenous Arctic and Nordic communities, such as the Inuit and Sami people, have used salmon and cod skin for centuries to make shoes, bags, and garments. The tradition faded with the rise of industrial leather production, but modern interest in sustainable materials has revive...
The Cofán people, also spelled as A’i Cofán, are one of the oldest surviving indigenous groups in the Amazon rainforest. Spread across the dense jungles of northeastern Ecuador and southeastern Colombia, the Cofán are known not just for their rich cultural heritage and deep-rooted traditions, but also for their fierce and innovative environmental activism. Despite centuries of colonization, missionary conversion, oil exploitation, and political marginalization, the Cofán have remained resilient stewards of the rainforest they call home. Ancestral Roots and Lifestyle The Cofán are believed to have lived in the Amazon for thousands of years. Traditionally, they occupied a large swath of territory along the Aguarico, San Miguel, and Guamués Rivers, where the Amazon basin’s biodiversity flourishes in explosive abundance. Their name for themselves, A’i, means "people" in their language, reflecting a common self-identification shared by many indigenous cultures. The Cofán way of li...