Open Letter to the European Union

A coalition of Global South organizations argues that the EU's Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA) lacks sufficient due diligence and safeguards to protect the rights of people and environments in resource-rich countries. They demand a human-rights-based approach to decarbonization, including mandatory due diligence, the requirement of Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) for Indigenous Peoples, and a shift from treating these countries as mere raw material suppliers to establishing equitable partnerships that include technology transfer and value addition.

• The signatories express concern over the "lack of strong due diligence terminology and safeguards" within the Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA) and related legislation, noting that resource-rich countries face double impacts from climate change and the increase in mining for decarbonization infrastructure.
• The letter demands that the CRMA implement strict mandatory Human Rights and Environmental Due Diligence (mHREDD) and adhere to international standards such as the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and the Escazú agreement.
• A critical requirement for strategic projects is the necessity of Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) from affected Indigenous Peoples, asserting that projects cannot proceed without this consent.
• The authors call for the exclusion of companies with a history of environmental destruction or human rights abuses from participating in strategic projects, and the establishment of safe grievance mechanisms and access to justice for victims.
• The letter argues against corporate self-regulation through certification schemes, insisting that companies be monitored by governments and neutral third parties.
• The EU is urged to move beyond treating resource-rich countries as mere suppliers by supporting value addition, climate finance, knowledge and technology transfer, and ensuring companies pay taxes in host countries.
• The document identifies specific 'no-go zones' that strategic projects must respect, including the deep-sea, the Arctic and Antarctic regions, Ramsar Sites, biosphere reserves, and sacred sites.
• The signatories call on the EU to reduce its own consumption to lower the demand for raw materials, citing an 'ecological debt' owed to the Global South.

APA

Trend Asia (2023). Open Letter to the European Union. https://trendasia.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/EN-Global-Justice-Letter.pdf

Chicago

Trend Asia. Open Letter to the European Union. 2023. https://trendasia.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/EN-Global-Justice-Letter.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Trend Asia |title=Open Letter to the European Union |date=17 July 2023 |url=https://trendasia.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/EN-Global-Justice-Letter.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{trendasia2023open, author = {{Trend Asia}}, title = {{Open Letter to the European Union}}, publisher = {Trend Asia}, year = {2023}, month = jul, url = {https://trendasia.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/EN-Global-Justice-Letter.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }