12th Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest Mobile
Local Natives

The Aetas are an indigenous group of people who fled to the mountains of Luzon during the Spanish conquest here in the Philippines. Despite the eruption of Mount Pinatubo in 1991 that brought about death to hundreds of people, the Aetas continue to thrive today. These Aeta children sit under the sun for hours until their fathers, the tour guides, go back down from the crater. What's striking is that the Aetas have a life expectancy of just 23 years, which means that there is a possibility that these children will, in a way, be young forever.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 08.2014
Date Uploaded: 11.2014
Photo Location: Botolan, Tarlac, Philippines
Camera: iPhone 5s
Copyright: © Iris Gutierrez