Former dam executive found guilty in the killing of Berta Cáceres
The alleged ringleader of the 2016 killing of environmental and Indigenous rights activist Berta Cáceres was convicted of murder by a Honduran court on Monday. Roberto David Castillo Mejía, the ex-head of the dam company Desa, was found guilty of participating in the assassination…
If you don’t know treaties and sovereignty, you don’t know history
Sovereignty is sovereignty, treaties are treaties, and nation to nation is between and among sovereigns There’s a widespread notion that “tribal sovereignty” and “Indian treaties” are legal, historical, practical and correct terms. Actually, sovereignty is sovereignty, and treaties are treaties, nation to nation is between and…
Indigenous people are the world’s biggest conservationists, but they rarely get credit for it
More than 30 percent of the Earth is already conserved. Thank Indigenous people and local communities. In a lush swath of tropical forest on the eastern coast of Mindanao, the second-largest island in the Philippines, you can glimpse the brilliant plumage of the rare…
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…