Peoples Rights and Defenders of Territories

The report argues that individual human rights frameworks are insufficient to protect Indigenous Peoples, Afrodescendants, and peasants facing systemic threats from corporate extraction and neoliberal globalisation. It defines 'territory' as any socially constructed space—including the human body—and calls for a shift toward recognizing collective rights to land, water, and self-determination to achieve transformative system change.

• The expansion of the neoliberal capitalist system is identified as a primary driver of multiple global crises, including climate, biodiversity, food, water, and health crises, which threaten livelihoods and ecological systems.
• Friends of the Earth International asserts that individual human rights do not provide sufficient protection for marginalized groups such as Indigenous Peoples, Afrodescendants, and peasants, whose survival depends on the recognition of collective rights.
• The document defines 'territory' broadly as any socially constructed space formed through spiritual, cultural, physical, and social relationships, explicitly noting that the human body can also be a territory and a site of resistance against exploitation.
• Corporate and state actors are accused of responding to collective resistance by restricting civil space, promoting the financialisation of nature, and committing human rights violations against those defending their territories.

APA

Friends of the Earth International (2023). Peoples Rights and Defenders of Territories. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/ISS-Conceptual-Framework-ENG.pdf

Chicago

Friends of the Earth International. Peoples Rights and Defenders of Territories. 2023. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/ISS-Conceptual-Framework-ENG.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Friends of the Earth International |title=Peoples Rights and Defenders of Territories |date=2023 |url=https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/ISS-Conceptual-Framework-ENG.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{friendsoftheearthinternational2023peoples, author = {{Friends of the Earth International}}, title = {{Peoples Rights and Defenders of Territories}}, institution = {Friends of the Earth International}, year = {2023}, url = {https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/ISS-Conceptual-Framework-ENG.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }