The Mbuti are an indigenous pygmy group living in the Ituri forest of Zaire. While doing research for this article it was discovered that Mbuti is quite often called Bambuti, however, it is only one of the four cultures that make up Bambuti. Researchers believe pygmies have lived in the rainforests of central Africa for more than 6,000 years. The Mbuti are primarily gatherers who hunt or gather most of their food. The culture of the Mbuti or Bambuti is egalitarian in which there is no defined leader. Conflicts are resolved by community consensus. The Mbuti culture holds the forest in which they live in high regard. Their belief is that they are one with the forest. They even refer to the forest as “mother” or “father” because it refers to the way a mother and father provide for their children. In an effort to better understand the complex culture of the Mbuti people, the main focus of this brief report will be on the social organization, political organization and gender relations of the Mbuti people. The environment in which the Mbuti people live plays an important role in their social organization. “Although the Mbuti all lived in a remarkably uniform tropical rainforest environment, half of them were net hunters and the other half archers. The respective social groups reflected the adaptation to the different demand for hunting technologies of the larger group, which consists of smaller family units.” (Heinder, 1972). The large group of families worked together to make sure there were enough nets, net workers and people to stuff the game into the nets. During what the Mbuti call the “honey season,” the group works in smaller family units to hunt with nets; but the... half of the document... TB (1984). The Mbuti of Zaire: cultural survivor. Retrieved June 19, 2011, from the Cultural Survivor website: http://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/democractic-republic-congo/mbuti-zaireHeinder, K. G. (1972). ENVIRONMENT, SUSTAINANCE AND SOCIETY. Annual Review of Anthropology, 1, p207 - 226, 20p. Nowak, B., & Laird, P. (2010). Cultural anthropology. San Diego, California: Bridgepoint Education, Inc. Snyder, J. L. (2002). Anarchy and culture: insights from the anthropology of war. International Organization, 56 (1), 7-45.Turnbull, C. M. (1985). Processional ritual among the Mbuti Pygmies: JSTOR. Retrieved June 19, 2011, from the JSTOR website: http://www.jstor.org/stable/pdfplus/1145649.pdf?acceptTC=trueTurnbull, C. M. (1965A). The Mbuti Pygmies: an ethnographic investigation. American Museum of Natural History. New York, New York.