A decade of the Ruggie Principles: World events and looming legislation are forcing investors to step up on human rights
RI’s human rights specialist Gina Gambetta reflects on recent developments on the 10th anniversary of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights June marks 10 years since the UN Human Rights Council unanimously endorsed the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs),…
Ground Temperatures Hit 118 Degrees in the Arctic Circle
The ongoing climate crisis is not going to spare Siberia. Newly published satellite imagery shows the ground temperature in at least one location in Siberia topped 118 degrees Fahrenheit (48 degrees Celsius) going into the year’s longest day. It’s hot Siberia Earth summer, and it certainly won’t be…
Maya Peoples of Belize Win Lawsuit against Belize Government for Violating Land Rights
On June 16, 2021, the Supreme Court of Belize ruled in favor of Maya land rights, upholding the community of Jalacte’s right to Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) on their customary lands. The court issued a decision in the case, Jalacte Village vs. the…
Siberia, Protest and Politics: Shaman Alexander in Danger
In 2021 a modest long-haired Sakha man named Alexander Gabyshev was arrested at his family compound on the outskirts of Yakutsk in an unprecedented for Sakha Republic (Yakutia) show-of-force featuring nine police cars and over 50 police. For the third time in two years, he was…
Manganese matters
A metal of consequence for women and communities in South Africa affected by mining and the global energy transition Manganese has been identified as one of the key minerals for the realisation of the energy transition needed to address the climate crisis. It is,…
Putin’s Climate Envoy Should Be Persona Non Grata
He’s no climate expert, but he’s a champion when it comes to repression. John Kerry’s Russian counterpart has blood on his hands. Kerry, President Obama’s secretary of state and his chief negotiator for the Paris climate accord, now serves as President Biden’s Special Presidential…
‘Keystone XL is dead!’
Dallas Goldtooth wrote on Twitter: “We took on a multi-billion dollar corporation and we won!!” The Keystone XL pipeline project is officially terminated, the sponsor company announced Wednesday. Calgary-based TC Energy is pulling the plug on the project after Canadian officials failed to persuade…
Why Indigenous knowledge should be an essential part of how we govern the world’s oceans
Our moana (ocean) is in a state of unprecedented ecological crisis. Multiple, cumulative impacts include pollution, sedimentation, overfishing, drilling and climate change. All affect the health of both marine life and coastal communities. To reverse the decline and avoid reaching tipping points, we must…
Alaska Native corporation to protect its land, dealing blow to massive gold mine project
The nearly $20 million agreement includes land near Bristol Bay that covers part of the company’s proposed route for transporting ore Growing up in a small village in southwest Alaska, Sarah Thiele had a childhood defined by sockeye salmon. Her father caught the silvery-red…
‘I promised Brando I would not touch his Oscar’: the secret life of Sacheen Littlefeather
In 1973, she made history at the Academy Awards, appearing in place of Marlon Brando, declining his statuette and making a speech about Native American rights. She has been speaking out ever since Sacheen Littlefeather begins by announcing that this will be one of…