Socio-economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic
Scientists from Chapman University made a plan to protect the Tsimane people in Bolivia from COVID-19 and said this plan would also work for other indigenous peoples living on their own land.  The scientists said that many indigenous peoples have problems that make COVID-19 more dangerous for them, like poverty, less clean water, and other lung diseases. Hospitals may be a long distance away, and racism can affect the way doctors and nurses react.  But they also sometimes have things that help, like traditions of making decisions together and the ability to grow food nearby.  The scientists found people who spoke the Tsimane language as a first language and made teams to go to Tsimane towns to warn them about COVID-19.  They also used radio stations.  They said the best strategy was for whole communities to decide to isolate.  They found this worked well because the Tsimane already usually made their big decisions together as a community in special meetings and already had a tradition of quarantining new mothers.  The Chapman scientists said their plan would also work for other indigenous peoples who also make decisions together, like the Tsimane.