In the 1980s the Yawanawa led in the fight for the recognition of their native territories. The Yawanawa became the first indigenous people to obtain the official rights to their lands in the state of Acre.

The Yawanawa have since then reclaimed their sacred medicines, rituals, song and dance, festivals, games, traditional body painting and adornment, artwork and food, in a profound journey of cultural revival.

The village of Yawarany was founded by the father of Hoke Yawanawa, Yawarany. Hoke Yawanawa was learned from his father the history and the stories of the Yawanawa and led in the fight for the demarcation of their lands. Roke's sons Ronnã, Rene, Luan and Ruän are now taught the knowledge and the wisdom of their grandfather and of the older generation.

_{At the start of the 20th century, the Puyanawa inhabited the headwaters of the affluents of the lower Moa River. After contact, they were forced to live on lands belonging to a prominent farmer from the region, Colonel Mâncio Agostinho Rodrigues Lima. The Puyanawa live in two villages, Barão do Rio Branco and Ipiranga, situated in the municipality of Mâncio Lima in Acre. The main access route is the road, usable all year round. Like many peoples of Acre, the Puyanawa suffered heavily from the boom in rubber extraction in the region at the start of the 20th century. The survivors were forced to work in the rubber extraction areas – the seringais – and quickly found their way of life decimated. The Puyanawa were expelled from the lands, missionized and education in schools that banned any expression of any trace of their culture.}