Nina Pacari grew up in an urban indigenous family in the town of Cotacachi in the northern highland province of Imbabura. As an Indian girl living among mestizos, Pacari experienced racism, but also learned to negotiate the dominante culture while developing a strong sense of ethnic pride. Trained as a lawyer, Pacari went on to become one of Ecuador's most important indigenous leaders, eventually becoming the first indigenous woman elected to Ecuador's National Assembly as well as the minister of foreign affairs under the government of Lucio Gutiérrez.