Observaciones escritas en relación con la Solicitud de Opinión Consultiva sobre Emergencia Climática y Derechos Humanos a la Corte Interamericana de Derechos Humanos de la República de Colombia y la República de Chile

The document argues that the protection of environmental defenders is critical for combating the climate crisis and that the Escazú Agreement provides the necessary legal framework to ensure access to information, public participation, and justice. It highlights the disproportionate risks faced by women and indigenous peoples, and warns that the energy transition must not replicate the extractive and colonial patterns of the fossil fuel industry.

• Latin America and the Caribbean is identified as the most dangerous region globally for environmental defenders, who face murders, intimidation, forced displacement, and criminalization.
• The Escazú Agreement is the first binding international treaty to explicitly require the protection of environmental human rights defenders, recognizing them not only as individuals but also as groups and organizations.
• Indigenous peoples play a disproportionate role in biodiversity conservation, safeguarding 80% of the planet's biodiversity despite making up 6% of the population, yet they suffer over one-third of all fatal attacks against environmental defenders.
• Women and youth are significantly more vulnerable to climate disasters, with women being 14 times more likely than men to die during such events.
• Women environmental defenders face gender-specific violence, including smear campaigns, defamation, and the use of the term 'gender ideology' to delegitimize their work and justify abuses.
• Non-state actors, including private companies and international financial institutions like the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank, have an independent responsibility to respect the rights of environmental defenders regardless of state capacity.
• The energy transition in Latin America risks replicating colonial and extractive patterns of the fossil fuel industry, often ignoring rights of access to information and participation.
• In Argentina, fracking in the Vaca Muerta formation has been linked to an exponential increase in seismic events since 2015, with 401 events recorded.
• In Ecuador, the state has failed to effectively implement a court order to extinguish gas flares (mecheros) in the Amazon, with 95% of the flares still operating despite the expiration of the legal deadline.
• Lithium extraction projects in Jujuy and Salta, Argentina, are criticized for lacking adequate environmental impact assessments and failing to consider cumulative effects on the fragile water balance of the Salinas Grandes-Guayatayoc basin.
• In Brazil's Juruena River Basin, the proliferation of hydroelectric projects, particularly Small Hydroelectric Plants (PCHs) and Generation Centers (CGHs), often proceeds with simplified licensing that exempts them from environmental impact studies.

APA

Center for International Environmental Law (2023). Observaciones escritas en relación con la Solicitud de Opinión Consultiva sobre Emergencia Climática y Derechos Humanos a la Corte Interamericana de Derechos Humanos de la República de Colombia y la República de Chile. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Amicus_Brief_Strengthening_Environmental_Defenders_Rights_in_the_Climate_Crisis_brief.pdf

Chicago

Center for International Environmental Law. Observaciones escritas en relación con la Solicitud de Opinión Consultiva sobre Emergencia Climática y Derechos Humanos a la Corte Interamericana de Derechos Humanos de la República de Colombia y la República de Chile. 2023. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Amicus_Brief_Strengthening_Environmental_Defenders_Rights_in_the_Climate_Crisis_brief.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Center for International Environmental Law |title=Observaciones escritas en relación con la Solicitud de Opinión Consultiva sobre Emergencia Climática y Derechos Humanos a la Corte Interamericana de Derechos Humanos de la República de Colombia y la República de Chile |date=18 December 2023 |url=https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Amicus_Brief_Strengthening_Environmental_Defenders_Rights_in_the_Climate_Crisis_brief.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{centerforinternationalenvironmentallaw2023observaciones, author = {{Center for International Environmental Law}}, title = {{Observaciones escritas en relación con la Solicitud de Opinión Consultiva sobre Emergencia Climática y Derechos Humanos a la Corte Interamericana de Derechos Humanos de la República de Colombia y la República de Chile}}, institution = {Center for International Environmental Law}, year = {2023}, month = dec, url = {https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Amicus_Brief_Strengthening_Environmental_Defenders_Rights_in_the_Climate_Crisis_brief.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }