‘Since the 1990s, in line with the recommendations of the Washington Consensus, Latin American governments have … reinforced and expanded an economic model based on the extraction of primary commodities for export. Mining, of course, is only one part of a much bigger picture. During this period, hydrocarbon extraction, agribusiness, electricity generation (including renewables, such as hydroelectric plants and windfarms), major works of infrastructure, and tourist developments, have all brought about extraordinary and unprecedented changes in the geography of Latin America. The most alarming consequence of this is the ongoing and accelerating destruction of the Amazon, a ten-million-year-old forest of which, in little over half a century, nearly a fifth has been destroyed.’ ‘They [the industry] themselves recognize that one of their biggest problems is obtaining this social licence; it’s becoming increasingly difficult. As mining expands, so does conflict, and so does rejection of the industry. And we believe this trend is only going to increase in the coming years.’
– Cesar Padilla, of the Latin American Observatory of Mining Conflicts (OCMAL)
‘I think the rights of nature have enormous potential. Enormous and completely transformative for our societies … Especially in the context of climate change, biodiversity loss, and elimination of ecosystems in which we find ourselves, understanding the rights of nature as a limit on human societies is hugely important.’
– David Fajardo Torres, Ecuadorian law student and environmental activist with the groups Yasunidos and the People’s Council for the Water of Cuenca
In Oaxaca, southern Mexico, communities are organizing to resist the large-scale private extraction of sand and gravel from the Río Grande, which is wiping...
In March 2025, the rivers of Esmeraldas, an Ecuadorian province that for decades has suffered from the social and environmental impacts of the petrochemical industry, were heavily polluted by a 25,000-barrel crude oil spill. Afro-descendant communities, environmental defenders organized in solidarity networks, and local universities continue agitating the murky waters of a disaster the country would prefer had sunk into oblivion.
Drawing inspiration from LAB’s Environmental Defenders series, LAB contributor Leon Elliott has created an interactive tool that traces important developments in the fight for...
In the second of two articles, mining engineer Laurence Morris describes how the oligarchy of the 'Big Five' mining companies operates and the negative consequences of their monopoly of power, influence and resources.
Mining engineer Laurence Morris shows how the world's 5 largest mining companies constitute an oligarchy, with serious consequences for mine workers, communities, the environment and the countries which depend on their corporate 'largesse'
Bebbington, A. and Bury, J. (2013) ‘Political ecologies of the subsoil’. In: A. Bebbington and J. Bury, eds., Subterranean Struggles. New dynamics of mining, oil, and gas in Latin America. Austin, TX: University of Texas Press, pp. 1–26.
Boudewijn, I.A.M. (2020) ‘Whose Development? How Women Living Near the Yanacocha Mine, Peru, Envision Potential Futures’. Bulletin of Latin American Research, 40(2), pp. 188–203.
Machado Aráoz, H. (2012) ‘Minería transnacional, conflictos socioterritoriales y nuevas dinámicas expropiatorias: el caso de Minera Alumbrera’. In: M. Svampa and M. Antonelli, eds., Minería transnacional, narrativas del desarrollo y resistencias sociales, 1st ed. Buenos Aires: Biblos, pp. 181–204. Available at: <http://maristellasvampa.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Miner%C3%ADa-transnacional.pdf> [Accessed 26 May 2022].
McNeish, J. (2018) ‘Resource Extraction and Conflict in Latin America’. Colombia Internacional, (93), pp. 3–16.
Sandy, M. (n.d.) ‘The Amazon Rain Forest Is Nearly Gone. We Went to the Front Lines to See If It Could Be Saved’. Time. Available at: <https://time.com/amazon-rainforest-disappearing/> [Accessed 27 May 2022].
