Discover Peru
Playwright and actor
Novelist
Writer and poet
Volleyball player
Italian-Peruvian naturalist and geographer
Singer and percussionist
Last Inca emperor
Politician, former prime Minister
Journalist and TV host
Poet
Inca warrior
Actor and comedian
Biophysicist
Poet
Doctor and researcher
Businessman, Interbank group
Journalist and writer
Poet and writer
Singer and songwriter
Writer
Film director, Berlin Golden Bear winner
Football player
Writer and journalist
Doctor and scientist
Photograph
Chess player
Industrialist
Former general
Specialist in public health
Actress and singer
Afro-Peruvian music singer
Mathematician and engineer
Indigenous chronicler
Neurologist and anthropologist
Painter
Football player
National hero, military leader
Intellectual and reformer
Chef and entrepreneur
Fashion designer
Singer-songwriter
TV presenter
Marathon runner
Indigenous Peruvian chronicler
Theologian
Former national team captain
Economist and former health minister
Inca princess
Writer and television host
Folk musician
Poet and guerrilla
Former UN secretary-general
Chef, known for fusion cuisine
Football player
Peruvian aviation pioneer
Poet and artist
Marxist philosopher and writer
Industrialist and businessman
Novelist and ethnologist
Painter and muralist
Opera tenor
Fashion designer
Cardinal of Lima
Peruvian tennis player
Football coach
Leader of the indigenous rebellion
Military hero
War of the Pacific hero
The youngest mother in history
Politician
Creole music singer
Tennis player
Musician
Writer and politician
Politician and founder of the Christian Democratic Party
Founder of Sodalitium Christianae Vitae
Archaeologist and anthropologist
Military leader and politician
Television host
Actress and singer
Contemporary sculptor
Women’s rights activist
Beauty queen
Astrophysicist
Heroine of independence
Mathematician and archaeologist
Historian and anthropologist
Military figure and historical figure
Fashion photographer
Writer, Nobel Prize in Literature, Politician
Revolutionary leader
Environmental activist
Leader of the indigenous rebellion
Musician from Gaia band
War hero
Military leader and politician
Chef, known for Nikkei cuisine
Volleyball coach and former player
Environmental activist
Television personality
Writer
Football player
Epidemiologist and former health Minister
Inventor and aerospace pioneer
Soldier and inventor
Rock singer
Chef and co-owner of Central restaurant
Painter
Football player
TV presenter and actress
Actor
Writer and historian
Journalist and lawyer
Archaeologist, founder of Caral site
Monk and Saint
Saint, patron of Latin America
Physicist and engineer
World champion surfer
Actress
Oncologist
Singer, Latin Grammy winner
Former mayor of Lima
Singer
Actress
Former football player
Painter
Former football player
Painter
Inca leader
Archbishop, saint
Leader of the indigenous rebellion
Revolutionary indigenous leader
Diplomat and intellectual
Sculptor and painter
Political leader, founder of APRA
Lawyer and Former prime minister
Chef of Central restaurant
Former head of secret services
Popular singer
Fashion designer
Exotic music singer
Máxima Acuña, born in 1970 in the Cajamarca region of Peru, is a farmer and human rights defender who has become an icon of resistance against destructive mining projects. Her relentless struggle to protect her land from the multinational Yanacocha, which sought to develop a gold mine on her property, has made her a symbol of courage and resilience in Latin America. Máxima Acuña embodies the fight for environmental protection and the rights of rural Peruvian communities.
In the 2000s, Máxima Acuña, a humble farmer living in the Andean mountains, saw her life disrupted by the ambitions of the mining company Yanacocha. The company sought to expand its gold extraction operations in the region, including the land that Máxima and her family had lived on for decades. Refusing to leave her ancestral home, she engaged in a long legal battle against the company, facing threats, intimidation, and physical aggression.
Beyond her legal battle to protect her land, Máxima Acuña has become a voice for environmental defense in Peru. Her land, located in an ecologically sensitive area, is threatened by mining, which risks contaminating water resources and destroying local biodiversity. Her commitment to nature protection has gained her international support and highlighted the environmental impacts of mining projects.
In 2016, Máxima Acuña received the prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize, often referred to as the "Nobel Prize for the environment." This award marked the recognition of her heroic fight against powerful economic interests that threatened her community. Her struggle has inspired many other communities in Peru and Latin America to stand up for their rights against extractive industries.
Despite numerous attempts to evict Máxima Acuña and her family from their land, she has resisted with unwavering determination. Her fight has made her an emblematic figure in the movement against illegal and destructive mining. For many, she represents the strength of Peruvian peasantry and the right of indigenous peoples to live in harmony with their environment.
Máxima Acuña's fight continues to inspire environmental and human rights movements in Peru and beyond. Her struggle exemplifies how an ordinary person can stand up to powerful economic forces while defending core principles of justice, respect for nature, and the protection of indigenous rights.