When you opened Google Earth for the very first time, where did you go? For most people there's a common destination: Home. The definition of "home" changes by country, culture and climate. So as part of the relaunch of Google Earth back in April, we introduced This is Home, an interactive tour to five traditional homes around the world. You could step inside the colorful home of Kancha Sherpa in Nepal, or head to the desert and learn how an extended drought changed the lives of the Bedouin people.

Start with a Torajan home, built to withstand Indonesia’s wet season. Then head to Fujian Province, China, to peek inside the immense walls the Hakka people built to keep away bandits, beasts and warlords. See the shape-shifting yurt homes Mongolian country-dwellers use to move where their herds roam. Visit a village on Madagascar’s southwest coast where the Vezo people live off the third largest coral reef system in the world. Finally, see how a Paiwan shaman has integrated her spirituality into the walls of her home in Taiwan.

To tell these stories, we worked with partners and communities to digitally preserve homes of different cultures in Street View. Many of these homes belong to indigenous people, such as The Garasia people of India, the Chatino people of Mexico, the Torajan people of Indonesia, and the Māori people of New Zealand. Their homes represent their unique cultural identity and ways of relating to the environment.

Some of the images and stories provide a snapshot in time of cultures, who face economic, environmental and population pressures. For example, the Inuit people of Sanikiluaq have been building igloos for schoolchildren to learn in for decades, but in recent winters, conditions haven’t been cold enough to create the right type of snow. It’s important to document these lifestyles now, because some may be disappearing.

Thank you to the families who shared their homes, their customs and their culture with the world!

Brazil has one of the world’s most diverse populations, with more than 500,000 indigenous people living on 472 territories certified by the government—representing 13 percent of Brazil’s total land. Most of these territories are in the rapidly-changing Amazon region, the largest and most biodiverse tract of tropical rainforest in the world. Deforestation has had a devastating effect on indigenous people and the local economy, destroying biodiversity, and contributing to greenhouse gas emissions.

Indigenous communities play an important role in preserving the natural biodiversity and cultural richness of the Brazilian Amazon by sustainably managing their lands in a smanner sensitive to the delicate ecosystem.

That brings us to Google Maps. Integrating indigenous territories into our maps, like we announced earlier this month for Canada, is an essential step in accurately reflecting the world.  Now, through a partnership with FUNAI (Fundação Nacional do Índio), Brazil’s governmental agency overseeing indigenous affairs, Google Maps and Earth represent Brazilian indigenous territory labels and borders in a way that reflects the landscapes that local communities know so well.

On Google Maps and Earth, you can now see the names of certified indigenous territories in Brazil, search for indigenous territories using the name of the ethnic group living there and see how forests are maintained in these areas compared to other parts of the Amazon.

The Suruí people, living on the Sete do Setembre territory, are a notable example of how mapping indigenous territories can help prevent deforestation and preserve culture. Tribal leader Chief Almir first came across Google Earth in 2007, and immediately grasped its potential for conserving the heritage and traditions of his people. He proposed a partnership with Google to create an online map of Surui cultural heritage, as well as a new system to monitor illegal logging and carbon stock using Android smartphones. This was the first ever indigenous community-led deforestation and forest degradation mapping project. Through this project, the Surui calculated the value of their forest on the voluntary carbon marketplace— and became the first indigenous community to receive funds for preserving their forests.  

This update builds on other work by Google Earth Outreach to support cultural preservation and land management. Thanks to the Surui people and others around the globe, we look forward to continue to improve the digital reflection of indigenous lands on Google Maps and Google Earth.

This week we’re giving you a taste of what you can find in Voyager, a showcase of interactive tours and stories from experts, nonprofits and more in the new Google Earth.

When you opened Google Earth for the very first time, where did you go? For most people there's a common destination: We all want to see our home. The definition of “home” changes by country, culture and climate.

In the Voyager story This is Home, you can explore how humans have adapted to their own unique landscapes across our planet by looking at the most personal of places. Visit igloos inhabited by generations of Inuit people long ago; listen to stories in the colorful home of Kancha Sherpa; or head to the desert and learn how an extended drought has changed the lives of the Bedouin people. Visit a welcoming and tightknit community in Greenland with more sheep than people.

To tell these stories, we worked with partners and communities to digitally preserve homes of different cultures in Street View. The 360-degree imagery provides a snapshot in time of cultures facing economic, environmental and population pressures. For example, the Inuit people of Sanikiluaq have been building igloos for schoolchildren to learn in for decades, but in recent winters conditions haven’t been cold enough to create the right type of snow. It’s important to record this snapshot in time now, because some of these lifestyles may be disappearing.

Check back in the coming months as we take you to dozens more homes and cultures. And thank you to the families who invited us into their homes and the partners who made it possible!

This week we’re giving you a taste of what you can find in Voyager, a showcase of interactive tours and stories from experts, nonprofits and more in the new Google Earth.

When you opened Google Earth for the very first time, where did you go? For most people there's a common destination: We all want to see our home. The definition of “home” changes by country, culture and climate.

In the Voyager story This is Home, you can explore how humans have adapted to their own unique landscapes across our planet by looking at the most personal of places. Visit igloos inhabited by generations of Inuit people long ago; listen to stories in the colorful home of Kancha Sherpa; or head to the desert and learn how an extended drought has changed the lives of the Bedouin people. Visit a welcoming and tightknit community in Greenland with more sheep than people.

To tell these stories, we worked with partners and communities to digitally preserve homes of different cultures in Street View. The 360-degree imagery provides a snapshot in time of cultures facing economic, environmental and population pressures. For example, the Inuit people of Sanikiluaq have been building igloos for schoolchildren to learn in for decades, but in recent winters conditions haven’t been cold enough to create the right type of snow. It’s important to record this snapshot in time now, because some of these lifestyles may be disappearing.

Check back in the coming months as we take you to dozens more homes and cultures. And thank you to the families who invited us into their homes and the partners who made it possible!