Sherryanna Balkaran – a young Indigenous ambassador

By Paula Gomes

Sherryanna Balkaran, a 20-year-old beauty who belongs to the Indigenous nation of the Patamonas in the peaks of North Pakaraimas, in Region Eight (Potaro-Siparuni), hails from the small community of Paramakatoi, nestled on the plateau of one of the most ancient geological formations in the South American continent, and sits at an altitude of 970 metres above sea level.
Guyana Times caught up with Balkaran, who is also the reigning Indigenous Heritage Queen 2017, who shared her invaluable experience growing up in a traditional Indigenous community.

“I did my schooling in Georgetown but I would always go home to Paramakatoi when the school break commenced…,” said the former student of the Mae’s Schools. Balkaran explained that her parents sought to afford her and her siblings an education of the best quality, in light of the quality offered at the community level. Upon graduating high school, after having realised constraints and limitations in the education system, the headstrong young woman returned to render assistance to her fellow people by enrolling as an English volunteer teacher at the Paramakatoi Secondary School.
Within her very first year of teaching, with her consistent and dedicated attitude, Balkaran was able to send off a well prepared class into the Caribbean Secondary Examination Council (CSEC) in 2016, which saw a significant rise in passes as compared to the previous years.
Speaking on her recent achievement at the biannually hosted Amerindian Pageant, the beauty queen enthusiastically talked about realising her childhood dream – copping the heritage crown and title.
“Entering the pageant has always been a lifelong dream of mine. My mom would always tell me of the times growing up when I would mimic the delegates of the Indigenous pageant and repeat that I would one day become the queen… and here I am. I greatly desired to represent my people – my family …and to make them proud. And through hard work, dedication and discipline, along with God’s favour of course, I was able to achieve one of my dreams,” the beaming queen said.
According to Balkaran, she was confident but not over-confident – as “it is quite perilous to be”. Each contestant, like her, had high hopes of copping the title and brought something unique to the pageant, escalating the level of competition and inspiring her to be a better ambassador.
“I’ve gained so many things from participating in the Miss Indigenous Heritage Pageant. I’ve gained the friendships of nine intelligent, industrious, unique women from whom I learnt so many things; the title of Miss Indigenous Heritage Queen – a position that allows me to make a difference in the lives of my people and oh, yes a few pageantry paraphernalia such as two pairs of gorgeous heels and amazing outfits designed by Miss Vanda Allicock!.”
The Patamona native could not have selected a more befitting platform, targeting deforestation as a means of countering climate change, having recognised that not only is it a main driver of the aforementioned, but it is a plight subjecting the Indigenous, those who depend on the forest for their very survival and existence, to vulnerability and susceptibility.
“The forests are our homes – that which we have spiritual, physical and economic ties with – and currently, our homes are being destroyed; annihilated universally. I keep reiterating that climate change is not only a plight that affects a specific race or class of people, but one which affects us all, so we need to stop thinking that it’s the Governments’ problem; we need to stop relying on specific organisations to remedy same. Instead, we, the common man, need to work together; we need to work towards becoming a socially cohesive world so that we can mitigate this plague of climate change!” Balkaran posited.
An aspiring environmental lawyer, the Indigenous queen is also a first-year student at the University of Guyana, Turkeyen Campus. She believes Guyana is a country rich in natural resources and is often times, “raped by power-hungry business tycoons” who are indifferent to the fact that their business ventures erode the environment , polluting waterways and even threatening the livelihood of the natives.
With the advent of oil soon to hit Guyana, the Indigenous ambassador realises that there would be a need for more local, qualified and genuine lawyers to ensure that the environment remains a toxic-free zone, while ensuring Guyana’s first peoples are able to carry out their traditional ways of life.