Linda Etchart
Dr Linda Etchart is associate lecturer in Human Geography at Kingston University, and a regular contributor to the Latin America Bureau Environment Defenders Series. She is the author of Global Governance of the Environment, the Rights of Nature and Indigenous Peoples: Extractive Industries in the Ecuadorian Amazon. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2022.
www.lindaetchart.com
Will Noboa’s win bring Bukele-style authoritarianism to Ecuador?
In the run-up to Ecuador’s presidential elections on 13 April 2025, the two leading candidates, Daniel Noboa of the Acción Democrática Nacional (AND), and...
Ecuador’s presidential elections 2025
What do deep divisions within Pachakutik, Correísmo’s troubled history with the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and of Nature, and the ongoing demonization of Fernando...
Honouring Indigenous resistance in Totonicapán: interview with Maya K’iché exile Lucía...
Maya K'iché activist Lucía Ixchíu tells the story of her path to political activism, creating solidarity among diverse Indigenous communities in Guatemala; and her life in exile
Frente Amplio headed for victory in Uruguay’s October 2024 elections?
LAB caught up with Frente Amplio leader Fernando Pereira and his vice-president to find out how they propose to address the challenges the new government will face like the rise of the far-right, organised crime, and persistent poverty and marginalisation.
Yasuní National Park under threat once again
Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa now plans to continue oil extraction in Yasuní National Park – in defiance of the August national referendum result. Leonidas Iza, President of CONAIE, denounced the proposal as illegal and authoritarian.
Defending the Rights of Nature in Ecuador with Natalia Greene
LAB speaks to Natalia Greene, who was instrumental in bringing the Rights of Nature into Ecuador’s Constitution in 2008, about the environmental movement in Ecuador, the complexities of the current political situation and deteriorating security.
Who will save Yasuní?
Ecuadorians go to the polls on 20 August 2023, to elect both a new president and 137 legislators for the country's National Assembly. They will also be given the choice to vote ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ in a referendum, where a ‘Yes’ vote will shut down all oil extraction in Yasuní National Park.
Ecuador: the Napo goldrush and the rise of the narco-garimpeiros
When large mining companies such as TerraEarth withdrew from gold mining in Ecuador's Napo province, they paved the way for smaller scale illegal miners to move in in force, financed by cocaine money, with terrible consequences
Ecuador: Napo goldrush begins with big mining
Chinese owned TerraEarth started mining for gold in Ecuador's Napo province. After numerous instances of pollution of water sources, encroachments and other violations, court and regulatory action eventually forced the company to withdraw -- for now.
The Assassination of Eduardo Mendua
The killing of Ecuadorean indigenous leader Eduardo Mendua provides a text-book example of how extractive projects such as oil drilling divide communities, with often fatal results. The first of a series of articles in which Linda Etchart will 'follow the money' flowing from big oil and mining.
