Life is not a business!

The document is a statement by indigenous groups in Mexico, issued during COP 13 in Cancun, condemning the 'green economy' and extractivist projects—including wind parks, hydroelectric projects, and mining—as drivers of human rights violations and territorial plundering. The signatories argue that international frameworks like the Nagoya and Cartagena Protocols and the REDD+ program prioritize corporate profit over biodiversity and indigenous sovereignty, calling for the protection of biocultural heritage and food sovereignty against the commodification of nature.

• The signatories claim that the 'green economy' and the COP 13 framework facilitate a 'predatory extractivist model' where the Mexican State serves transnational corporations. They assert that biodiversity meetings are often converted into 'a business fair and a platform for the implementation of mega-projects'.
• Specific energy and industrial projects, including wind parks, hydroelectric projects, mining, and monoculture plantations, are identified as contributors to the 'plundering of lands and territories of indigenous communities' and the violation of native people's rights.
• The document criticizes the REDD+ Program as an example of a lack of genuine will to solve climate change, stating that native peoples are treated as 'laboratories' for testing sustainable development goals.
• The Nagoya and Cartagena Protocols are described as favoring multinational companies and promoting the 'privatization of goods and ancestral knowledge'. The signatories specifically name CONABIO and GIZ as 'green coyotes' that prioritize transnational corporations over native communities.
• The statement highlights the Maya ICBG project involving ECOSUR, the University of Georgia, the US government, and Nature Limited (UK) as a significant instance of 'biopiracy' that was stopped by indigenous and farmer resistance in Chiapas.

APA

admin (2016). Life is not a business! Friends of the Earth International. https://www.foei.org/life-is-not-a-business/

Chicago

admin. Life is not a business! Friends of the Earth International, 2016. https://www.foei.org/life-is-not-a-business/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=admin |title=Life is not a business! |publisher=Friends of the Earth International |date=4 December 2016 |url=https://www.foei.org/life-is-not-a-business/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{admin2016life, author = {admin}, title = {{Life is not a business!}}, publisher = {Friends of the Earth International}, year = {2016}, month = dec, url = {https://www.foei.org/life-is-not-a-business/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }