G1. Progressive Green

At the start of October activists staged an action at Schiphol Airport, demanding an end to KLM’s frequent flyer programme. It was the latest in a series of actions at the airport, demanding the airline take the climate crisis seriously and stop it’s attempts to incentivise people to fly more. Below, an activist explains what took place on the day and why ending frequent flyer programmes is so…

Source

Armenia is reconsidering its plans for a new nuclear power plant after a fresh proposal from Russia’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom and a sharp revision of the country’s future electricity needs, potentially opening the door to decades of continued dependence on Russian nuclear technology.

The discussions come as Armenia works to extend the operating life of its aging Metsamor nuclear power plant, whose sole functioning reactor was commissioned in 1980 and is now expected to remain in service until at least 2036.

During a September 29 meeting in Yerevan, Rosatom Director General Alexey Likhachev presented Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan with proposals for new nuclear generating capacity, including a Russian-designed VVER-1000 reactor capable of producing approximately 1,000 megawatts of electricity.

The proposal is one of several under consideration by Armenia, which has also explored nuclear cooperation with the United States, France, South Korea and China.

Pashinyan emphasized that no decision had been made and that the government would evaluate competing proposals on economic and technical grounds, including their cost, safety, construction schedules and guarantees.

But according to Bellona nuclear expert Alexander Nikitin Armenia’s eventual decision will be shaped as much by geopolitics as by its electricity requirements.

A changing calculation

Until recently, Armenia had favored replacing Metsamor with one or more small modular reactors, whose relatively modest generating capacity appeared better suited to the country’s limited electricity market.

But on October 1, Pashinyan acknowledged that the government’s calculations had changed.

According to the prime minister, new investment projects, including facilities associated with artificial intelligence, have substantially increased Armenia’s anticipated electricity requirements.

Just over a year ago, he said, Armenia had an electricity surplus. Now, investment commitments have created the prospect of a deficit.

“I have said dozens of times before that we need nothing more than a modular nuclear power plant,” Pashinyan said. “But now, due to this change, we have to understand that, most likely, a modular plant will not be enough for us.”

He suggested that a reactor with a capacity of 1,000 megawatts might prove a more practical alternative, although experts are still examining the question.

The shift could improve Rosatom’s prospects. Unlike many proposed small modular reactor designs, Russia’s conventional VVER technology has an established operating history, something Moscow has emphasized in promoting its nuclear exports.

Yet a large reactor would also present challenges for Armenia’s relatively small electricity grid, requiring careful consideration of how the country would manage the sudden loss of such a substantial generating unit.

Nikitin, however, believes Armenia should continue exploring smaller reactors rather than concentrating its future nuclear generating capacity in one large facility.

“Given Armenia’s heightened seismic activity, I believe the country would be better served by establishing several power-generation centers using small modular reactors based on designs currently being offered by nuclear companies from the United States, South Korea, France or even China,” he said.

He also suggested that Armenia could establish an international consortium to develop small modular reactors, potentially including Rosatom, since cooperation with the Russian corporation will remain necessary as long as Metsamor continues operating.

Keeping Metsamor running

Meanwhile, Armenia remains dependent on its existing nuclear plant.

Metsamor’s second reactor, a Soviet-designed VVER-440 unit, began operating in 1980. Both of the plant’s reactors were shut down following the devastating 1988 Armenian earthquake, but the second was restarted in 1995 amid severe electricity shortages.

Today, it supplies a substantial share of Armenia’s electricity, estimated by Nikitin at approximately 30 to 40 percent.

Rosatom is participating in a modernization program intended to extend the reactor’s operation until 2036, when it will have been in service for 56 years, excluding its period of shutdown.

Likhachev has said he sees no technical obstacles to reaching that target. He also disclosed that Armenian officials are examining the possibility of a further extension until 2046.

Such an undertaking would require extensive additional investment in safety systems, equipment modernization and spent-fuel storage. Likhachev acknowledged that the necessary expenditures could substantially increase the cost of electricity generated by the plant.

Nikitin describes the extension as an interim measure driven by Armenia’s difficult energy circumstances rather than a desirable long-term solution.

“Extending the operating lives of nuclear power plants has become common practice in virtually every country. There is nothing unusual about it in itself, although aging equipment can certainly be expected to cause problems, particularly when subjected to external stresses such as earthquakes,” he said.

He warned that Armenia’s seismic conditions and the limitations of Metsamor’s original Soviet-era design make replacing the plant particularly important.

“The sooner Armenia develops a new nuclear power infrastructure, the less likely it will be to encounter problems with a plant built to an outdated design that did not incorporate many of today’s safety requirements,” Nikitin said.

A decision with lasting consequences

For Armenia, choosing a replacement reactor involves more than selecting generating capacity.

In recent years, Pashinyan’s government has moved toward closer relations with the European Union while effectively freezing its participation in the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization. Armenia has also discussed the possibility of withdrawing from the Eurasian Economic Union.

Nikitin argues that Moscow views these developments with concern and regards nuclear cooperation as one means of maintaining its influence over Armenia.

“Russia is doing everything it can to preserve the country’s dependence on Rosatom, pursuing various initiatives and offering proposals through the nuclear corporation that appear attractive at first glance,” he said.

In Nikitin’s assessment, the strategic purpose of these offers is to discourage Armenia from moving further away from Russian-led institutions and toward the European Union.

Russia already supplies Metsamor’s nuclear fuel and provides technical services. Awarding Rosatom the contract for a replacement plant could preserve that relationship for decades through fuel deliveries, maintenance, specialized equipment, personnel training and nuclear safety support.

“If Armenia agrees to build another Russian nuclear power plant, it will effectively become dependent on Rosatom — and therefore Russia — for nearly a century,” Nikitin warned.

He pointed out that the long-term relationship between a nuclear plant and its technology supplier extends well beyond construction, encompassing fuel supplies, spent-fuel management and the maintenance of specialized equipment.

Choosing a Western or Asian supplier could diversify Armenia’s nuclear partnerships, although alternative technologies would bring their own financing, licensing and construction challenges. Pashinyan has said Armenia expects to select its new reactor technology by the end of 2027, perhaps sooner.

With construction likely to take many years, the government faces a narrowing window in which to replace Metsamor before its planned retirement. For Nikitin, the choice goes to the heart of Armenia’s relationship with Russia.

“The decision to build a new nuclear power plant in Armenia will undoubtedly be driven more by politics than by energy considerations,” he said.

The post Armenia reconsiders nuclear future as Rosatom offers replacement for aging Soviet reactor appeared first on Bellona.org.

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 17 October 2026- The 65th session of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has been suspended without agreement on the timeline for its Seventh Assessment Report (AR7) or the budget for 2027.

At the heart of the disagreement is when the IPCC’s next major climate assessment should be completed. Many developed countries, Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and some Least Developed Countries(LDCs) want the AR7 working Group reports completed by 2028, in time for the next Global Stocktake of the Paris Agreement. Many other developing countries have emphasised the need for a timeline that allows meaningful participation and rigorous scientific review. Discussions on the budget are also linked to decisions on the timeline.

Demand Climate Justice (DCJ) emphasised the importance of both timely scientific assessments and an inclusive, transparent and member-driven process for reaching decisions.

‘Scientific urgency and equity must go hand in hand. Meaningful inclusion is not simply about funding an additional delegate to attend IPCC meetings. Developing countries must also have sufficient time and resources to engage with scientific literature, review the assessments and contribute meaningfully to the process. Without this, the inequalities in participation that already exist risk being perpetuated,” said Meena Raman, Deputy Director, Third World Network.

DCJ also reiterated its call for a rapid and equitable phase-out of fossil fuels, emphasising that urgent climate action cannot wait for the next IPCC assessment. 

“The urgency of climate action has not changed. We need climate science that is both timely and inclusive, and a process that gives developing countries a meaningful voice. The science is already clear on the need for rapid emissions reduction. Equity and historical responsibility require developed countries to do their fair share of global mitigation efforts by moving first and fastest in cutting emissions, while providing finance, technology and capacity-building support to developing countries,” said Rachitaa Gupta, Global Coordinator, Demand Climate Justice.

Media enquiries and updates

For media enquiries, interview requests or further information, contact the Global Campaign to Demand Climate Justice (DCJ) at dcj.comms@demandclimatejustice.org.

For the latest statements, analysis and updates on climate justice and COP31, visit demandclimatejustice.org or follow DCJ on X, Instagram, LinkedIn and Facebook.

The post IPCC-65 suspended without agreement on key decisions, DCJ calls for urgency and equity in climate science appeared first on Global Campaign to Demand Climate Justice.

URGENT ALERT: Mining pushes through in Palawan, local resistance rises

The Barricade at Linao, Brooke’s Point Palawan

Yes to Life No to Mining calls for the immediate withdrawal of Calmia Nickel Inc. from private indigenous lands in Palawan

Calmia Nickel Inc. (CNI) has crossed every line. At dawn on October 1, heavily armed guards illegally entered private coconut land in sitio Linao, Brooke’s Point, fencing it with barbed wire to force their way into the uplands — land that is part of the ancestral domain of the Pala’wan people.

Indigenous landowners immediately built their barricade, refusing to let mining equipment advance. Within hours, dozens of Pala’wan families gathered in solidarity. Vice Mayor Mary Jean Feliciano, SB Member Jaymart Naigue, former IP councillor Victor Colili, Church leaders, and civil society stood with them.

Calmia’s rush uphill is already destroying decades-old coconut groves, uprooting fruit trees and threatening the primary forest next. The Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) has been alerted as communities witness their livelihoods being bulldozed.

 

 

Company armed mining guards at the barricade

Pala’wan representatives from Linao and nearby barangays are now demanding transparency from Calmia and the pro‑mining IPDO BICAMM regarding royalty funds — questions that remain unanswered. But the violations run deeper:

• Calmia is operating without a Mayor’s Permit. 

• Mining activities overlap a CADT area application, where indigenous communities hold legal rights. 

• Tenements intrude into the Mount Mantalingahan Protected Landscape (MMPL). 

• FPIC processes led by NCIP were not based on consensus, as required by the Indigenous Peoples Right Act (IPRA law), but on majority voting — a direct violation of customary law. 

Once again, NCIP, the agency meant to defend Indigenous rights, is siding with the oppressors.

Global solidarity is growing. The Rainforest Rescue petition against mining in Palawan and Brooke’s Point is nearing 49,000 supporters.

Coconut plantation being flattened by Calmia

Since 2016, mining permits in Palawan have allowed 321,066 trees to be cut or earth‑balled — a devastating trend worsening water scarcity as El Niño intensifies across the Philippines.

It is time for the Palawan Council for Sustainable Development (PCSD) to uphold its mandate, and for DENR–MGB to revoke Calmia’s permit before more irreversible damage is done.

Defending the Pala’wan people and one of the Philippines’ last great forests is not optional — it is imperative.

Defending the Barricade

Is your community, organization, or network interested in becoming a YLNM member? Would you like to know more about us? Please send an email enquiry to membership[at]yestolifenotomining.org

Subscribe to our bi-monthly newsletter Suscríbase a nuestro boletín

Yes to Life No to Mining global solidarity network since 2012 | Contact Us

• Follow
• Follow
• Follow
• Follow

The post PALAWAN: MINING PUSHES THROUGH, LOCAL RESISTANCE RISES appeared first on Yes to Life No to Mining.

Yesterday, the New York Times revealed that Elon Musk has spent at least $366 million to sway the results of the midterms. I suppose that makes today as good a moment as any to reflect on the harm that Elon Musk and his DOGE cronies have caused over the last two years.

Scores of people dead. By some estimates Musk’s boastful dismantling of USAID has resulted in the deaths of at least half-a-million children. If accurate, that would mean the world’s richest man caused the deaths of hundreds of thousands of the world’s poorest children. 

Explosive diarrhoea. As this fired FDA worker warned, months before the cyclosporiasis outbreak that resulted in “exploding diarrhea” for tens of thousands of Americans, DOGE’s gutting of the government’s food safety programs made such an outbreak far more likely.  

Stealing from every living American. Whistleblowers have gone on the record, alleging that a DOGE staffer stole the sensitive personal data of every living American and told colleagues he wanted to share it with a private corporation. 

It’s no wonder that Musk and his cronies are terrified that they’re going to face real consequences and accountability in the new Congress. And Musk’s fears must be growing. 

Since our Investigate DOGE campaign launched, 17 Members of Congress have responded to our campaign. Here’s a snapshot of what they’re saying:

 

“There needs to be accountability for Elon Musk (…). They don’t talk about the 4.5 million children around the world who he possibly sentenced to death by dismantling USAID. He needs to answer for that. He needs to be subpoenaed. He needs to face investigation. He needs to answer for what he did with DOGE.”

– Rep. Ro Khanna (CA)

“Elon Musk and DOGE slashed the VA, gutted Social Security and undermined dozens of lifesaving federal programs – all in the name of ‘savings.’ Unsurprisingly, their math doesn’t add up. DOGE’s actions need to be investigated, and the Privacy Act needs to be updated so these failures can’t happen again.”

– Rep. Lori Trahan (MA) – MA-3, August 10, 2026

“I strongly support efforts to investigate the full extent of DOGE’s actions, including any coordination between DOGE and election deniers or other non-governmental organizations that have sowed chaos and distrust in our government’s institutions.”

– Senator Cory Booker (NJ), July 28, 2026

“Elon Musk needs to testify under oath. DOGE gutted the federal workforce and fired experts we need to keep America safe. He must answer for the damage he caused.”

– Rep. James Walkinshaw (VA) – VA-11

 

On November 4th, we’ll find out what the new Congress looks like. But no matter the results, this age of impunity for billionaires needs to come to an end, and first and foremost that means Elon Musk being held accountable. 

 

To join the Investigate DOGE campaign and make sure you get the latest updates, join 38,000 others and send your Members of Congress an email now. 

 

In Solidarity
– Alec Connon, Stop the Money Pipeline, coalition director

News & Updates from the Coalition

– STMP is Cleaning House

Stop the Money Pipeline launched in January 2020 as a coalition of 32 organizations. We grew rapidly to be a network of 230+ groups. However, since then some groups moved on to other work, fallen out of touch, or no longer even exist. (A lot can happen in 7 years.)

That’s why we’re currently running a coalition recommitment process – inviting existing coalition partners to formally recommit to the network and inviting new organizations to consider joining. So far, nearly eighty organizations have recommitted to being a part of the coalition.

So this seems like a good time to say, if you’re a member of a community group that might be interested in joining the Stop the Money Pipeline network, complete this interest form and we’ll be in touch. (Please note: this is only for organizations interested in joining the network; not individuals)

– Developing the climate movement’s leadership

Perhaps the single most important element of successful social movements is their commitment to continually developing leadership. That’s why, over the last nine months, we’ve run the Local Leads, Global Impacts program, putting a dozen climate movement campaigners through a rigorous nearly year-long training and mentoring program.

This month, we wrapped up the cohort. Here’s what one cohort member, 350 Seattle’s Aki Chatterji, who’s leading the critical Make Polluters Pay WA campaign, had to say about the program:

“The cohort gave me frameworks, language, and practical tools I know I’ll keep returning to, and the weekly 1:1 mentorship has been absolutely invaluable in developing my skills, navigating thorny challenges, and managing the day-to-day of running a campaign.”

As the cohort comes to an end, we’re excited to see how Aki and all of this talented group of campaigners put these skills to use in the real world, building power and leading campaigns to end the fossil fuel industry.

 –As the rest of the world ditches coal, Wall Street – and Citibank – doubles down

At the Glasgow climate talks in 2021, the world’s governments made a landmark commitment to phase-out coal. A new analysis from Urgewald shows that since then coal financing has flatlined, but banks are moving in very different directions. 

Since 2022, European banks have slashed their financing of coal in half, and banks across Japan, India, and South-East Asia have cut funding for the dirtiest of fossil fuels. At the same time, US banks have increased their financing of coal by 23%. Citibank was among the worst offenders.

So, all the more reason to keep the pressure up on Costco, one of Citibank’s largest clients, demanding it break ties with the coal-loving bank. Which is exactly what we’ve been doing: over the last month, activists across the Gulf South have been visiting Costco warehouses, demanding it drops Citibank as its co-branded credit card partner.

And wherever you are, you can take action with the Costco: Clean Up Your Credit Card campaign by taking any of these simple actions.

 – Aligning your money with you values:

Our partner Third Act is hosting a training series on how you can align your money with your values.

Next up, they are sharing how you can ensure that your home and auto insurance isn’t with a company that’s fueling the flames of the climate crisis. Join the session on October 19th at 1PT/4ET. 

– Energy is growing for real solutions to the climate-driven insurance crisis

During NY Climate Week, we partnered with RAN and NYCC to bring together state legislators, policy experts, and community leaders to talk about the climate-driven insurability crisis and what we can do about it.

We heard powerful stories from New Yorkers who have faced real financial hardship when insurers raised rates, and denied claims. We also heard all about how the insurance industry is making record profits, as it passes the costs of the climate crisis onto everyday people.

Most importantly, we plotted out how we can pass the Insure our Communities Act, the country’s strongest piece of legislation to jointly tackle the insurance industry and the fossil fuel industry’s role in the climate crisis. If you want to nerd out on all of this & more, watch the entire panel here.

And if you’re in New York and you have a story about insurance industry malpractice, we’d love to hear from you. 

– Polluters must be made to pay

Last month, Big Oil tried to move its “legal immunity bill” through the House of Representatives. Thankfully, after thousands of you contacted your Members of Congress to demand they stop the bill, the legislation stalled before the House went out on recess.

But we need to be vigilant. We expect Big Oil’s puppets in Congress to try and move the legislation forward again in the lame duck session after the midterms. So if your Members of Congress haven’t heard from you on this yet, make sure they do. 

And on that note, it seems appropriate to close with the words of the United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres when he addressed world leaders in New York last month: polluters must pay.

The next learning session is on Monday, Sept 14th at 1PT/4ET. RSVP here.

The post October Newsletter: Musk’s Reckoning is Coming. appeared first on Stop the Money Pipeline.

Ultra-processed food affects metabolism and brain activity, even with the same nutrients Anthony Lacey October 16, 2026

It’s not just poor nutrition that links ultra-processed food to health harms, a new study finds. 

The body’s response is also determined by the amount of processing the food has gone through, which changes the way we get energy from food.

Researchers at Virginia Tech gave 32 study participants two different meals three days apart. The meals had the same amount of calories and nutrients, but one was ultra-processed and the other wasn’t. 

Participants had a greater insulin response after eating the ultra-processed meal, meaning their bodies were working harder to regulate their blood sugar. Their brain activity also changed when they looked at pictures of ultra-processed foods, or UPF.

How the study measured UPF metabolism

In the study, published recently in Nature Metabolism, the researchers wanted to find out whether a meal of ultra-processed food would be metabolized, or used for energy, differently than a meal of minimally processed food.

The researchers designed two 300-calorie meals whose nutrition matched: They were nearly identical in calories, carbs, fat, fiber, protein, sodium and water content.

The ultra-processed meal included portions of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, deli turkey, veggie chips, instant mashed potatoes, cereal and a cookie. These foods are not always ultra-processed, but the brands used in this study were.

The minimally processed meal was made from banana, dried cranberries, cheese and egg.

Participants ate the meals three days apart. Before and after each meal, they entered a metabolic chamber – an airtight room that measures calories burned based on the amount of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the chamber.

Researchers found that the ultra-processed meals led to higher insulin, the hormone that regulates blood sugar, and lower use of carbohydrates for energy.

How the study measured brain activity

The study also assessed whether the two meals would activate the brain in different ways.

Researchers later showed participants pictures of ultra-processed and minimally processed foods while they received a specialized brain scan called a functional MRI. Some of the food pictured was the same food used in the study’s meals.

One key finding: Ultra-processed food caused different responses in the area of the brain related to motivation and reward.

That might mean that, in addition to variations in how our bodies use food for energy, the ways the brain thinks about and values food fluctuates depending on how processed it is.

Science is showing that food processing can affect health

Some researchers say nutrition, not processing, makes ultra-processed food harmful to health. It’s true that ultra-processed foods are often high in added sugar and saturated fat, and low in beneficial nutrients like fiber and protein.

But this isn’t the first study to show that processing plays a role. In 2019, the first randomized controlled trial showed that an ultra-processed diet led to greater calorie intake and weight gain than a minimally processed diet – even when they had the same nutritional profile.

What’s more, many researchers who have critiqued the main classification system for ultra-processed food have received food industry funding.

What you can do 

It’s not practical for most people to avoid all ultra-processed food – they’re widely available, affordable and appealing for consumers. Research has even shown that food companies took tips from the tobacco industry to create products with maximum pleasure and appeal.

The federal government has failed to regulate ultra-processed food. States like California are taking the lead, recently enacting a law establishing a “non-ultra-processed” label for foods sold in California stores.

Until change comes to your state, you can use EWG’s Food Scores, which rates more than 150,000 products on nutrition, ingredients and processing and flags UPF for you. 

Shoppers on the go can also use EWG’s Healthy Living app to find non-UPF options at the grocery store.

Areas of Focus Ultra-Processed Foods Family Health Authors Sarah Reinhardt, MPH, RDN October 16, 2026

The version of record of this op-ed was published in Yellowknifer on October 15, 2026.

By Jax Jacobsen (Strategic Communications Lead, Geothermal Energy Office, Cascade Institute) and Emily Smejkal (Policy Lead, Geothermal Energy Office, Cascade Institute)

With the Ekati diamond mine closing early, Yellowknife has to rethink what will drive its economy next. Jax Jacobsen and Emily Smejkal argue that the biggest barrier to growth in the North is energy: the NWT grid leans heavily on hydropower, and drought-driven low reservoirs have caused outages and pushed the territory's power corporation back onto costly, high-emission diesel.

Their answer is geothermal. The heat beneath Yellowknife itself is best suited to heating buildings, but power-grade resources lie south of Great Slave Lake, near Hay River and other South Slave communities. If the proposed Taltson hydro expansion connects the South Slave and North Slave grids, electricity generated there could flow straight to Yellowknife. With enhanced geothermal systems now delivering utility-scale power and drilling costs falling fast, they write, steady, low-cost, low-emission geothermal power could give the city the foundation for a new Northern industrial base.

Read the full op-ed in Yellowknifer.

Featured image: Old Town Yellowknife by Mike Tidd, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

The post Yellowknife can become an energy powerhouse through geothermal appeared first on Cascade Institute.

Today, 17 organizations—including healthcare providers, youth organizations, and clean energy and climate advocates—filed a lawsuit against the Montana Public Service Commission (PSC) for rejecting a 2024 petition demanding that it recognize its constitutional duty to consider climate change in the regulation of Montana gas and electric utilities. Montana courts have found that the state has an obligation to consider climate change in decision making, but the PSC has failed to protect Montanans from the climate-related costs and risks of its utility decisions.

The groups petitioned the PSC to confirm its constitutional obligation to account for climate costs and risks in its decisions in February 2024, and the PSC held a public hearing in April 2024. After nearly two and a half years, the PSC resolved the petition on September 15, 2026, refusing to recognize its constitutional obligations. Meanwhile, the Commission has continued to make consequential decisions that have increased ratepayer exposure to climate-related costs and risks, including approving NorthWestern Energy’s request to charge customers for the high construction and operation costs for the Yellowstone County Generating Station, a 175-megawatt methane gas plant in Laurel, Montana.

“Montana children are growing up with climate-related disasters that are no longer distant or abstract,” said Patricia M. Notario, MD, FAAP, president of the Montana Chapter for the American Academy of Pediatrics. “Wildfire smoke can make it difficult for a child with asthma to breathe, floods and severe weather can disrupt homes, schools and medical care, and the stress of these events can affect children’s mental health long after the immediate danger has passed. As pediatricians, we have a responsibility to prepare our patients and communities for these threats and to advocate for a healthier environment for every Montana child.”

“When the PSC fails to consider climate change in its decisions, Montanans bear the high costs and risks that come with fossil-fuel electricity, as well as the unaffordable and unconstitutional effects of a changing climate,” said Amy Cilimburg, executive director of Climate Smart Missoula. “Our longer fire and smoke seasons, hotter temperatures, and drought – all of these impacts can credibly and proportionally be attributed to the burning of fossil fuels. The health of members of our community and our ability to afford electricity is directly connected to the electricity generation and rates as determined by the Commission.”

“Young Montanans deserve a future where we can build our lives, raise families and continue to enjoy the places that make Montana home,” said Alice Boyer, executive director with Forward Montana. “Climate change threatens that future and young people will live with the consequences of the decisions being made about our energy systems today, which have real impacts on the health and affordability of our communities. When the Public Service Commission ignores the Montana Constitution and fails to account for impacts to our environment, it jeopardizes the future young Montanans deserve and the communities we call home.”

“Our kids fought for their constitutional right to a clean and healthful environment in Held v. Montana, and have been advocating for climate justice long before and ever since,” said Sarah Lundquist, executive director of Families for a Livable Climate. “Now it’s our turn. The Public Service Commission has enormous influence over Montana’s energy future, and we must ensure climate change is at the center of its decisions. It is our responsibility as adults to protect the future our kids deserve.”

“Montana’s landscapes, wildlife, rivers, and fisheries are all being affected by climate change. Hunters and anglers will suffer when the building blocks of our environment are altered,” said Gayle Joslin, board member of Helena Hunters and Anglers Association. “Functional ecosystems are not only important for fish and wildlife, but they also provide ecosystem services to Montana’s people in the form of clean water, clear air, and vibrant outdoor spaces. The Montana Public Service Commission has a constitutional duty to seek remedies that protect and improve our environment.”

“The Public Service Commission has more influence over Montana’s greenhouse gas emissions and the climate crisis than any other state agency,” said Nick Fitzmaurice, energy transition engineer for Montana Environmental Information Center. “Our Constitution is clear, and the Held v. State of Montana Supreme Court ruling reaffirmed that the state and each person must maintain and improve a clean and healthful environment, which includes a right to a stable climate. It is long overdue for the Commission to protect utility customers and their wallets by taking climate impacts into consideration in its regulation of gas and electric utilities.”

“With each passing year, the effects of greenhouse gas pollution on Montana and the region become more severe,” said Derek Goldman, Montana policy and regulatory associate with the NW Energy Coalition. “It’s time for the Commission to honor its legal obligation and nudge Montana’s utilities towards cleaner, cheaper renewable energy resources.”

Earthjustice and Western Environmental Law Center represent Climate Smart Missoula, Citizens for Clean Energy, Earthworks, Families for a Livable Climate, Forward Montana, Helena Hunters and Anglers, Helena Interfaith Climate Advocates, Montana Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, Montana Environmental Information Center, Montana Health and Climate, Montana Public Interest Research Group, Montana Renewable Energy Association, NW Energy Coalition, Park County Environmental Council, Renewable Northwest, Sierra Club Montana Chapter, and 350 Montana in the lawsuit.

Background:

The PSC is an elected body charged with ensuring that utility customers have continued access to utility services that are affordable, reliable, and in the public interest. Five commissioners represent PSC districts across the state. With broad oversight authority over Montana’s monopoly utilities, the PSC makes decisions that can either promote or discourage continued utility investment in expensive fossil-fuel infrastructure. For example, in December 2025, the PSC approved NorthWestern’s request to increase customers’ electricity bills, in part to pay for the Yellowstone County Generating Station.

In the historic youth constitutional climate trial, Held v. State of Montana, the court declared that, under Article II, Section 3 of the Montana Constitution, Montanans “have a fundamental constitutional right to a clean and healthful environment, which includes climate as part of the environmental life-support system.” (Held Order, p. 102, ¶ 7). The court also confirmed that Article IX, Section 1 of the Montana Constitution places “an affirmative duty upon the government to take active steps to realize this right.” (Held Order, p. 96, ¶ 45) Critically, the court determined that “Montana’s climate, environment, and natural resources are unconstitutionally degraded and depleted due to the current atmospheric concentration of GHGs and climate change.” (Held Order, p. 98, ¶ 50). The district court’s decision was upheld by the Montana Supreme Court in December 2024.

While the Montana PSC has not recognized its obligation to consider climate-related costs and risks in its decisionmaking, utility commissions in other states regularly do so.

Contacts:

Melissa Hornbein, Western Environmental Law Center | 406-708-3058, hornbein@westernlaw.org

Amy Cilimburg, Climate Smart Missoula | amy@climatesmartmissoula.org

Dara Deins, Forward Montana | dara@forwardmontana.org

Nick Fitzmaurice, MEIC |  (406) 443-2520 x 007, nfitzmaurice@meic.org

Perry Wheeler, Earthjustice | pwheeler@earthjustice.org

The post 17 groups sue to require Montana PSC to consider climate in utility decision making appeared first on Western Environmental Law Center.

We bring you the recently posted Daily Show clip about the border wall fight. The Daily Show is known for using off-beat absurdity to reveal the absurd, and they do not disappoint! All jokes aside, they do a pretty good job of portraying the ridiculousness of such a wasteful, destructive, and unnecessary border wall along the U.S and Mexico border.

The post Daily Show: The Border Wall Fight appeared first on CELDF - Community Rights Pioneers - Protecting Nature and Communities.

EWG, Consumer Reports: People demand stronger protections from pesticides rcoleman October 14, 2026

WASHINGTON – Consumers deserve to be protected from pesticides, and Congress should reject any pesticide legislation that fails to do so. 

Today the Environmental Working Group and Consumer Reports unveiled their Consumer Pesticide Safety Bill of Rights to ensure that any federal pesticide legislation protects the public, including children. 

Consumers too often lack basic information about pesticides used in their homes, communities and in food, and lack meaningful protections when those chemicals put their health at risk. 

The Consumer Pesticide Safety Bill of Rights declares Americans’ right to: 

• Warnings on the products people bring into their homes, including the right to know whether a pesticide is linked to cancer and other health harms.. 
• Know if a toxic pesticide that can make people sick is being sprayed nearby.
• Know that the food people feed their children is subject to the toughest pesticide safety standards. 
• Expect that children are protected from toxic pesticides when they are at school or playing in local parks. 
• Expect that U.S. pesticide regulators will act quickly to review toxic pesticides when other nations ban them. 
• Be informed about where pesticides have been used, when they’ve been mishandled, and how much is being detected in Americans’ food and water.
• Seek justice when pesticides have caused harm. 

“Consumers deserve to know if the pesticides we bring into our homes or that have been sprayed nearby might make us sick,” said EWG Legislative Director Geoff Horsfield.

“We should be confident our children are safe when they’re at school and confident their food is subject to the toughest safety standards,” he added.

“Our current pesticide laws fall short of giving consumers the information and protections they need to protect their families,” said Brian Ronholm, director of food policy for Consumer Reports. “This Bill of Rights is a road map for making the food we eat and the communities we live in safer.”

The Consumer Pesticide Safety Bill of Rights addresses long-running gaps in pesticide protection.

Few states require farmers or commercial pesticide companies to publicly notify when they’re spraying these chemicals. Warnings on household pesticide products are often inadequate. And many pesticides found on food children commonly eat aren’t subject to the strictest safety standards. 

Only a handful of states require buffers to protect kids at school from exposure to toxic pesticides, and standards vary regarding pesticides that can be used in school buildings or on school grounds. 

Many pesticides used in the U.S. have been banned by other nations. But the EPA can take decades to restrict pesticides. Consumers also lack basic information about pesticide use, spills and detections on food and water.

Exacerbating an already problematic situation, the Supreme Court recently acted to limit access to the courts for people harmed by pesticides. 

The Consumer Pesticide Safety Bill of Rights tackles many of these issues head-on – and lawmakers may soon have a chance to incorporate it into legislation.

Congress could consider renewing the Pesticide Registration Improvement Act as early as December. The current law, through which the chemical industry negotiates fees that fund EPA’s pesticide reviews, is set to expire next September.

“Congress should reject any new pesticide law that fails to protect consumers,” said Horsfield. “We should expect our kids to be safe from toxic pesticides. We deserve to know when pesticides could make us sick. And we should be able to seek justice in court when pesticides do make us sick.”

“The renewal of the Pesticide Registration Improvement Act is a critical opportunity to deliver meaningful protections for Americans, including clearer warnings and greater transparency about where these chemicals are used and when they’re detected in our food and water,” said Ronholm. 

###

The Environmental Working Group is a nonprofit, non-partisan organization that empowers people to live healthier lives in a healthier environment. Through research, advocacy and unique education tools, EWG drives consumer choice and civic action. Visit www.ewg.org for more information.

Founded in 1936, Consumer Reports (CR) has a mission to help build a fair and just marketplace for all. The nonprofit CR is widely known for its rigorous research, testing, and reviews of thousands of products and services. CR advocates for consumer rights and protections, reports extensively on consumer issues, and surveys millions of people every year. CR is nonpartisan and independent, and it accepts no advertising. Learn more at www.consumerreports.org

Areas of Focus Family Health Children’s Health Pesticides ‘Bill of Rights’ seeks to protect consumers as Congress weighs federal pesticide policy law Press Contact Alex Formuzis alex@ewg.org (202) 667-6982 October 14, 2026

The Canadian Deep Geothermal Coalition (CDGC) and ORKIS Energy Cluster Iceland (ORKIS) are pleased to welcome the Joint Statement between Canada and Iceland, which will accelerate geothermal energy innovation and deployment to advance clean energy and energy security.

The agreement establishes an Embassy-led Canada-Iceland geothermal network that brings together the private sector, Indigenous partners and relevant government stakeholders to identify opportunities for collaboration, including in northern and remote communities.

The Joint Statement is an important step forward on geothermal collaboration between Canada and Iceland, complementing the memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed between the CDGC and ORKIS in June 2026. The MOU calls on the CDGC and ORKIS to collaborate in propelling geothermal energy to more widespread development and use.

Specifically, the June 2026 MOU aims to achieve the following:

• Exchange best practices in geothermal development, including in technology and innovation, regulation, financing, and policy;
• Jointly promote investment in geothermal in both Icelandic and Canadian markets, by reaching out to capital markets and institutional investors and garnering the attention of the financial sector;
• Identify opportunities for joint/coordinated research, as well as joint development and/or demonstration projects;
• Develop joint workforce, training, and capacity building to identify skills and the educational pathways required for next-generation geothermal development;
• Collaborate on educational content and communications materials to highlight geothermal energy’s role in the energy transition.

Geothermal energy has been moving forward across the world as next-generation technologies transform what’s possible. Canada and Iceland are actively driving this transformation through innovative technologies and projects. As electricity demand rises amidst growing geopolitical instability, Canada and Iceland can meet the moment by advancing geothermal energy.

“Energy cooperation is one of the most practical ways for Canada to deepen ties with trusted allies. Iceland has shown the world what a country can build when it commits to geothermal, and Canada has one of the world’s most skilled drilling and subsurface workforces. Together, we can move faster than either country could alone,” said Peter Massie, Director of the Geothermal Energy Office at the Cascade Institute. The Cascade Institute acts as Secretariat for the Canadian Deep Geothermal Coalition.

Sverrir Jan Norðfjörð, Managing Director of ORKIS Energy Cluster Iceland, said: “Iceland has spent decades turning its volcanic geology into a reliable source of clean energy and valuable know-how. Canada has the opportunity to develop geothermal on a much larger scale, and by combining Iceland’s experience with Canada’s deep subsurface expertise, we can help move geothermal from proven potential to a major part of the next generation of energy systems.”

To arrange interviews, please contact Jax Jacobsen, Strategic Communications Lead, Geothermal, at the Cascade Institute (jax@cascadeinstitute.org), or Sverrir Jan Norðfjörð (sverrir@orkis.is).

About the Canadian Deep Geothermal Coalition (CDGC)

The Canadian Deep Geothermal Coalition was established in 2025 to bring together organizations committed to advancing deep geothermal energy in Canada. Coalition members span industry, Indigenous organizations, communities, academia, government, technology developers, and other stakeholders united by a shared vision: making Canada a global leader in geothermal energy.

About ORKIS Energy Cluster Iceland

ORKIS Energy Cluster Iceland is a collaborative platform bringing together Icelandic companies, research institutions, public organizations, and other stakeholders working across the energy sector. Building on Iceland’s long experience in geothermal energy, ORKIS supports collaboration, innovation, knowledge-sharing, and international partnerships that help advance geothermal and other sustainable energy solutions. ORKIS works to connect Icelandic expertise with international opportunities and partners, contributing to the continued development and global application of geothermal energy.

The post Canada and Iceland deepen geothermal ties appeared first on Cascade Institute.

EWG statement on California announcing clean energy milestone during 'extreme' heat Anthony Lacey October 13, 2026

SACRAMENTO – California Gov. Gavin Newsom today announced that the state’s power grid met the highest demand for electricity in four years. 

The peak demand on the grid, due to “extreme” heat, was on par with the peaks of 2006 and 2017. It was met without having to conserve energy or take emergency steps.

The Environmental Working Group recently released a report finding climate change is driving up “major” and “extreme” heat advisories between 30% and 145% in parts of the state. Yet soaring electricity costs make home cooling unaffordable for millions, threatening public health.

This dynamic creates an impossible choice for many Californians struggling with affordability: Suffer during hazardous heat or default on electricity bills.

EWG is calling for policymakers to find solutions that tackle both the heat and utility bills. 

One step is doing more to expand consumer access to distributed generation devices, such as rooftop solar or balcony solar, that can help power electricity-hungry air conditioners more cost-effectively and without contributing to climate change or adding strain to the electric grid. 

Newsom last month signed into law an EWG-backed measure that will significantly expand access to balcony solar for millions of Californians. The state needs to take similar actions to continue to lower costs and expand access to solar energy. 

The following is a statement from Bernadette Del Chiaro, EWG’s senior vice president, California:

California kept the lights on – but could consumers afford to run their AC?

With the help of even the smallest solar energy systems, such as balcony solar, millions of California families are turning toward the sun to achieve greater energy affordability and beat the heat with solar-powered AC. 

California should do more to ease restrictions on customer-sited solar energy, lower upfront costs, and put local solar energy devices in the hands of everyone.

###

The Environmental Working Group (EWG) is a nonprofit, non-partisan organization that empowers people to live healthier lives in a healthier environment. Through research, advocacy and unique education tools, EWG drives consumer choice and civic action.

Areas of Focus Renewable Energy California Grid met highest electricity demand in four years without emergency measures Press Contact Alex Formuzis alex@ewg.org (202) 667-6982 October 13, 2026

CELDF is launching a new series called Capitalism and Democracy, and we are inviting you to join us!

The post “Common Sense” Newsletter – October 2026: New Series: Are Capitalism & Democracy Compatible? appeared first on CELDF - Community Rights Pioneers - Protecting Nature and Communities.

Study: Hundreds of chemicals linked to breast cancer in lab and animal studies in high use in the U.S. Anthony Lacey October 13, 2026

Breast cancer is the second most common cancer diagnosis among women and cases are on the rise. Anyone can get breast cancer – but it’s most common in women.

A new peer-reviewed study looks at where Americans are exposed to chemicals that may contribute to that rise. Published in Environmental Health Perspectives, the analysis found that hundreds of chemicals tied to breast cancer risk in animal and laboratory studies turn up in everyday products, food, drinking water, pesticides and air pollution.

It was led by scientists at the Silent Spring Institute, with co-authors from the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of California, San Francisco. 

In this study, the researchers found breast-cancer-relevant chemicals in consumer products, food, drinking water and drinking water supplies, pesticide products, medications and building materials. 

Many of the chemicals are produced in large amounts. In 2019 alone, 143 were made in or imported to the U.S. in volumes of 1 million pounds or more.

A 2024 analysis by the same authors identified 920 chemicals that caused mammary gland tumors in animal studies or changed hormone activity in ways linked to breast cancer. This study tells us where we could potentially be exposed to those chemicals.

Breast-cancer-relevant chemicals

In their 2024 study, the Silent Spring researchers created the list of 920 chemicals they call breast-cancer-relevant chemicals. A chemical made the list if it did at least one of the following:

• Caused mammary gland tumors in rats or mice in at least one study.
• Increased estrogen or progesterone production in lab tests using human cells. 
• Activated the estrogen receptor, the switch inside cells that responds to estrogen.

The researchers also checked whether each chemical can damage DNA, another way chemicals can lead to cancer. Many chemicals on the list do more than one of these things. Chemicals with strong hormone effects that also damage DNA were the most likely to cause mammary tumors in animals.

Presence on this list is not proof that a chemical causes breast cancer in people. It flags chemicals that need more research, especially when many of us are exposed to them every day.

What the authors found

The team combined data from more than a dozen federal databases that track how chemicals are produced, used, released into the environment and measured in people.

Some of the chemicals are well known, including bisphenol A, better known as BPA, bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate, the solvent dichloromethane and parabens. Others, such as p-cresol and 2,4-dimethylphenol, have received much less attention.

Federal biomonitoring data show many of these chemicals, or the compounds they break down into, are in almost all people. The “breakdown products” of methylparaben, the sunscreen active ingredient oxybenzone, several phthalates and certain pesticides were detected in more than 95% of people tested.

Industrial facilities reported releasing nearly 82 million pounds of these chemicals into the air, water and land in 2024. When the researchers included all sources of air pollution, such as vehicles, wildfires and the burning of fossil fuels, estimated emissions topped 2 billion pounds in 2020.

Consumer products

Most of the breast cancer chemicals, about 500, were present in the consumer products category. Of those, 181 are also hormone disruptors and 88 are genotoxic, meaning they can damage cellular genetic material, which can lead to mutations or cancer. 

Among these commonly used ingredients in personal care products are chemicals like parabens, phthalates and bisphenols. 

Also on the list are ingredients in hair dyes like resorcinol and p-phenylenediamine, which causes mammary tumors in animal studies. They can also damage DNA and increase production of estrogen and progesterone in lab tests. 

Studies have linked hair dye use to breast cancer risk.

Prescription skin-lightening creams can contain hydroquinone, which also increased estrogen and progesterone production in lab tests. The researchers note these products are more likely to be used by women of color, which could add to existing disparities in exposure. 

Pesticide products

The study also highlighted pesticide products as an important source of exposure to breast cancer chemicals. People can be exposed to pesticides in multiple ways, including as residues on produce and in drinking water. Pesticides may also be found in products in the home, such as insect repellents, medical treatments and pest control. 

The study reported 485 chemicals found in pesticide formulations. But the authors point out that only about one-third of them are currently registered with the Environmental Protection Agency as active ingredients. 

In most cases, before a pesticide can be sold, the EPA requires extensive toxicity testing of its active ingredients, including long-term studies of whether they cause cancer.

The other chemicals are classified as inert ingredients – solvents, preservatives and other chemicals that help a product work. Inert ingredients do not require tests as stringent as those for active ingredients. Only sometimes they are required to be on product labels. This means people using these products usually can’t tell which inert ingredients they contain. 

Using national biomonitoring data collected between 2017 and 2020, the study reported that organophosphate pesticides (like malathion, which is commonly used on crops) were found in more than 90% of  the U.S. population. 

This finding adds to existing concerns about widespread “forever chemicals” PFAS pesticide use, including mixtures of pesticide classes frequently detected on produce. 

Food and water

The researchers report 462 of these chemicals in food. Of these, 83 are on the Food and Drug Administration’s list of substances added to food, which means they are expected to be there. The others may be present as contaminants that migrate from packaging and processing equipment or be present as contaminants for other reasons, such as pesticide residues. 

Others are chemicals formed when meat is cooked at high temperatures and some, such as soy compounds, occur naturally in plants.

People who rely more on packaged and ultra-processed foods may face higher exposure to chemicals from food additives and packaging.

The authors also reported 162 breast-cancer-relevant chemicals, such as pesticides and industrial solvents, likely to be present in drinking water. 

Some chemicals form as byproducts when drinking water is disinfected. These disinfection byproducts, or DBPs, emerge when disinfectants such as chlorine react with naturally occurring organic matter in water. 

Some DBPs have been linked to cancer and other health concerns.

Among the pesticides linked to breast cancer and reported present in drinking water, 50 have current registrations, but 37 no longer have a current EPA registration. 

The data source the authors used to identify chemicals in drinking water, the EPA’s CPDat, reports only whether a chemical has been found in drinking water. It does not report where or how much of it was found or when the detection occurred. 

Pharmaceuticals

The researchers also found 142 breast-cancer-relevant chemicals in medications sold in the U.S. Most of the active ingredients fall into a few groups: hormone treatments, chemotherapy drugs, treatments for infections and parasites, anti-inflammatory drugs and blood pressure medications.

This does not mean you should stop taking medication. Many of these drugs treat serious conditions, and some, like hormone therapies, have been shown to interact with the hormone system because they have been designed for that purpose. 

Totality of exposures

The study highlights the widespread occurrence of breast-cancer-relevant chemicals. People are not just exposed to one chemical at a time. They’re exposed to hundreds of chemicals from multiple sources over the course of their lives. Even if most are at low levels, exposures add up.

The national biomonitoring data cited in the study show how common these combined exposures are. Research shows that exposure to chemical mixtures, or multiple chemicals that can add up or sometimes interact together to multiply each other’s effects, creates a total health risk that is measurably more harmful than those from the chemicals acting alone. 

And in most cases, regulations for chemicals do not take cumulative exposures into account.

What you can do to reduce exposure 

• Check EWG’s resources for safer products. Use our Healthy Living App, Skin Deep® and Guide to Healthy Cleaning and look for products with low hazard scores or our EWG Verified® mark.
• Invest in a home water filter for improving water quality. Consult the EWG Tap Water Database to find out what’s in your water. EWG’s water filter guide can help you find the right filter for your budget. Shop organic, when possible, to reduce pesticide exposure. Consult the EWG Shopper’s Guide Pesticides in Produce™ to find out which fruits and vegetables have the highest and lowest pesticide residues, so you can make the best decisions for your family. And see EWG’s Guide to Washing Produce. 
• If you have questions about a medication, especially if you have a history or higher risk of breast cancer, talk with your doctor or pharmacist before making changes.

Other actions you can take

• Know your family history. If possible, find out whether anyone in your family has had breast cancer. Some genes with mutations increase risk of developing this type of cancer. 
• Get screened early. Preventive procedures such as regular breast cancer screenings are important to detect breast cancer early, which can also make it easier to treat. As of 2026, experts suggest screening for breast cancer starting at age 40. 

Areas of Focus Food & Water Family Health Women's Health Toxic Chemicals BPA Pesticides October 13, 2026

24th Provincial Seed Fair in Catamarca for the Exchange of Native and Local Seeds A transformative practical experience with a story to tell Article by BePe... explore BePe's campaigns here

 In a global context of extreme violence that has escalated into various forms of war, life—and, above all, the planet’s habitability for the human species—is seriously and gravely threatened. Meanwhile, those who hold the power to make decisions on behalf of the people remain entrenched in their many layers of denial. And today, more than ever, the relationship between the global and the local is glaringly evident.

Thus, in Catamarca, where extractive violence wages war against us by exploiting, plundering, and poisoning our sacred resources, local governments—puppets of corporate power—remain blind and deaf to the Earth’s rebellious cry. As we know, Catamarca is not an isolated case in Argentina, nor in Latin America and the Caribbean, nor in Africa, nor in the Global South. We recognize that this violence is cruel and widespread; yet the Earth’s strength and courage is far-reaching, for this strength is ancestral and the spring which gave rise to Life.

Throughout these more than 500 years of imperial, capitalist, colonial, and patriarchal wars, the Earth has made its voice heard through the Indigenous Peoples of Abya Yala and Africa, right up to the present day. Today, as the war intensifies, that nonviolent struggle has become an unwavering voice in the slogan “Water is worth more than gold,” proclaimed by countless assemblies, communities, and socio-environmental organizations throughout the world. And the Earth itself cries out with the peoples: its elements are shaken; its climates and the gases that regulate life-sustaining conditions become unstable and unpredictable; the illness caused by the long war endured manifests itself in devastation and phenomena labeled “natural” when they are not.

And we do not merely cry out and resist; we also re-exist through collective experiences that open up possible futures of lives worth living. For example, the forms of re-existence emerging in the Bolsón de Fiambalá, a land formation in the Andean foothills (1), with a landscape of immeasurable beauty and mystery. Mystery in the face of the invisible balance of living energies that combine extreme temperatures, winds, snow, semidesert aridity, brackish and fresh waters, with human and non-human cultivation—all of which generate and reproduce Life.

Photos by BePe: Seed Fair festivities in Fianbalá, Catamarca, Argentina

There, where corporate power sees only speculative profit and calls the object of imperial possession the “Lithium Triangle,” mega-corporations have set up shop under the protection of local governments that call themselves democratic. Currently operated by the Zijin Mining Group, the high-Andean Tres Quebradas lagoons are being plundered of lithium to fuel weapons of war and luxury goods in the Global North. As is well known, the destruction caused by extractive mining is never limited to the mine site itself: in this case, it irrevocably affects an entire ecosystem of perennial snowfields, surface and groundwater—both brackish and fresh—that sustain unique animal and plant species and maintain the climatic balance between the high peaks and the agriculturally productive valleys.

It is precisely in one of those valleys—the one nestled in the Bolsón de Fiambalá—that peasant families live in villages whose names allude to the local geography or recall ancient indigenous terms: Medanitos, Tatón, Chuquisaca, La Mesada, Palo Blanco, Quebrada de Zárate, Las Papas, La Ciénaga, Antinaco, Quebrada del Cerco. People, families, communities bearing the colonial wound etched into the memory of their bodies and their lands, where the monoculture of grapevines—to name just one of those wounds—accelerated the processes of soil desertification and the impoverishment of life. However, despite the imposition of a capitalist, colonial, and patriarchal system, these families came together as Peoples, transforming the stigma of those wounds into courage, dignity, and organized struggle.

It did not happen overnight; nor did it follow a linear, unidirectional path. Because becoming a community involves engaging in processes of community dialogue, the course of which is not the focus of this article. We do, however, wish to highlight the fundamental importance of these processes for wisely safeguarding the ways of life that sustain the community with sustainability and justice.

It was during the final years of the 1980s when the gatherings, the collective readings of contexts, and the critical interpretation of situations referred to as “gaps between rich and poor” (2)… gradually expanded into circles of analysis and reflection, which added complexity to existential issues and defined praxis as a form of communal struggle. When the time came to harvest the first fruits from the gardens, they felt that Mother Earth, caressed by peasant hands, had regained her power to bring forth life and had given them food…

26th Provincial Catamarca Seed Fair Poster 2026

Nearly forty years after those early organizational efforts, these farming families are part of ACAMPA, the Abaucán Farmers’ Association—named after the river that provides them with food and a sense of identity. They farm using agroecological methods and live in community with a sense of shared identity. They run a community FM radio station whose broadcasts reach all the communities in Bolsón. And, since 2001, they have been organizing—in collaboration with BePe—a seed fair featuring native and heirloom seeds.

Going against the grain of the decisions made by those who call themselves politicians and business people—but who are merely modern-day versions of the conquerors of the 15th through 18th centuries—the Peoples of Bolsón de Fiambalá re-exist in defiance of the systems of death imposed for millennia. They unmask the lies of those who claim to be representatives of democracy and agents of progress. They exercise political and economic power in the service of the reproduction of Life.

On 12th September this year, the fair—which had begun with a dozen stalls—spanned a grounds that accommodated more than 200 tables where farming families displayed the fruits they had harvested, raised, and processed. The 24th Provincial Fair for the Exchange of Native and Creole Seeds took place. What had once been a local event has spread to various parts of the province of Catamarca and to the neighboring provinces of Santiago del Estero and La Rioja. What began as a display of seeds expanded to include seedlings, farm animals, nuts, sweet and savory preserves, various types of textile crafts, wines, and fruit syrups… and most importantly; the scale of this growth also served to foster values, promote autonomous and dignified ways of life, and share transformative knowledge and practices.

While the dominant powers expand the frontiers of extraction in the Global South—currently in the name of the misnamed “energy transition”—grassroots policies have been building ecologically sustainable territories open to economically independent horizons. In the face of the denial of the future engineered by oligarchic elites, these small-scale initiatives scattered across various regions of the Global South build bridges toward possible and necessary futures.

 

References:

1. It is a depression or flat valley, completely surrounded by mountains, with no access to the sea. In this case, the basin—with an area of approximately 2,000 km²—borders the puna, a desert high plateau ranging in elevation from 3,000 to 6,000 meters above sea level. Both regions are characterized by the presence of volcanoes and high-Andean lakes (as well as salt flats in the puna).

2. An explicit way of describing socioeconomic inequality during those years; it served as a key to a critical interpretation of reality.

Is your community, organization, or network interested in becoming a YLNM member? Would you like to know more about us? Please send an email enquiry to membership[at]yestolifenotomining.org

Subscribe to our bi-monthly newsletter Suscríbase a nuestro boletín

Yes to Life No to Mining global solidarity network since 2012 | Contact Us

• Follow
• Follow
• Follow
• Follow

The post 24th Provincial Seed Fair in Catamarca for the Exchange of Native and Local Seeds appeared first on Yes to Life No to Mining.

Russia’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom has taken full control of one of the country’s largest logistics companies, consolidating an expanding transport empire that now stretches from Arctic icebreakers to Black Sea grain terminals.

The acquisition, announced October 7, gives Rosatom the remaining 51 percent of Delo Group, a major Russian container and freight operator, from its founder Sergei Shishkaryov. Rosatom already owned the other 49 percent.

The takeover is the latest step in Rosatom’s transformation from a nuclear energy corporation into a sprawling state conglomerate with an increasingly important role in Russia’s international trade.

Bellona expert Alexander Nikitin sees a broader political purpose behind the expansion.

“Putin trusts Rosatom,” Nikitin said. “That is why Putin is giving Rosatom access to resources the nuclear corporation could previously only have dreamed of.”

According to Nikitin, the corporation’s rapid growth has become particularly pronounced since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Building a transport empire

The purchase gives Rosatom complete control of Delo’s network of maritime terminals, rail infrastructure and container operations.

According to Reuters, the company operates a container fleet with capacity exceeding 220,000 twenty-foot equivalent units, or TEUs, and approximately 40,000 railway platforms. It also controls the KSK grain terminal at Novorossiysk, one of Russia’s largest grain export facilities, with annual handling capacity of up to 10 million tonnes.

Rosatom already controls another major shipping company, FESCO, which operates maritime and rail freight services linking Russia’s Far East with domestic and international markets.

According to Russian business newspaper Vedomosti, Rosatom chief Alexei Likhachev said the corporation’s combined logistics operations now account for approximately 50 percent of Russia’s container-handling market and 44 percent of its rail container transport.

The acquisition followed a prolonged disagreement between Rosatom and Shishkaryov over Delo’s future. Under a shareholder buyout mechanism initiated earlier this year, Rosatom acquired the founder’s stake for a reported 77 billion rubles, approximately $900 million. Interfax reported that Rosatom financed the purchase with borrowed funds.

Nikitin argues that the acquisition belongs to a much larger pattern of concentrating strategically important industries under Rosatom’s control.

The corporation’s influence, he said, now extends across “nuclear and conventional weapons, advanced technologies across the civilian nuclear design and construction industry, mineral resources in the Arctic, including rare earths and precious metals,” as well as logistics infrastructure.

“Rosatom is becoming the managing corporation for Russia’s major port facilities,” Nikitin said, citing Vladivostok, Kaliningrad, Novorossiysk, St. Petersburg and Nakhodka.

The Arctic connection

For Rosatom, the acquisition is about more than moving containers. Since 2018, the corporation has been responsible for developing the Northern Sea Route, while its nuclear icebreaker fleet provides the infrastructure necessary to keep Arctic shipping lanes navigable.

Moscow has repeatedly promoted the route as a strategic commercial corridor connecting Russian Arctic resources and Asian markets.

But expanding Arctic shipping requires considerably more than icebreakers. It also depends on cargo terminals, railway connections, container services and reliable transport networks linking the Arctic to the rest of Russia.

By combining Delo with FESCO and its existing transport operations, Rosatom is seeking to bring more of that infrastructure under unified management.

In remarks published by Vedomosti, Likhachev described the corporation’s goals as strengthening Russia’s transport sovereignty, maintaining international freight connections and developing both the Northern Sea Route and the broader Trans-Arctic transport corridor.

The corporation also argues that consolidating its logistics businesses will eliminate overlapping investments and could save as much as 100 billion rubles over the next decade.

Whether those savings materialize remains uncertain.

The acquisition does not mean that all these operations will directly serve the Northern Sea Route. Many of Delo’s most important assets lie far from the Arctic. But the consolidation gives Rosatom a much larger role in determining how Russian freight moves between ports, railways and international markets.

More than a commercial transaction

The acquisition also illustrates how closely Russia’s largest state corporations are becoming intertwined with the country’s broader strategic priorities.

As Reuters reported, Shishkaryov said he intends to devote a substantial portion of the proceeds from the sale to Russia’s national security needs, although he provided no details about how the money would be used.

For Nikitin, however, Rosatom’s growing power is about more than overcoming commercial obstacles.

“Rosatom is becoming an institution the Kremlin can rely on when necessary,” he said.

Concentrating so many resources under its roof, Nikitin argues, is making Rosatom increasingly important to the country’s political leadership.

“Today, it is impossible to name another Russian company that has expanded so dramatically or accumulated so many resources as Rosatom,” he said. “In every sense, it has become the most trusted asset of Russia’s current leadership.”

The post From reactors to shipping: Rosatom tightens its grip on Russian transport appeared first on Bellona.org.

Gender, Patriarchy & Extractivism YLNM position paper | 2025

Introduction

What is Gender?

Feminist Understandings of Extractivism

Extractvism & Patriarchy

Extractivism & Gendered Impacts

Women on the frontlines of resistance to extractivism

Historical & Material Connection

Challenges of Resistance

Feminist Future Beyond Extractivism

Conclusion

Download

Yes to Life No to Mining and Rainforest Rescue standing in solidarity with the women in Loeha Raya resisting nickel mining, Sulawesi, Indonesia, October 2023. Credit. YLNM

This position paper was prepared by Dr V’cenza Cirefice, member of CAIM, on behalf of and in collaboration with YLNM.

Introduction

Extractivism creates both environmental and social injustices because it is rooted in systems of oppression, patriarchy, colonialism, white supremacy and capitalism. Gender and extractivism are intertwined in multiple and complex ways. Here, we lay out these links and call for gender justice and dismantling patriarchy to be considered central to anti-extractivism movements and deeply necessary for post-extractive futures.

Extractive projects, their impacts and resistance to them, are highly gendered. Women and girls are often first and worst impacted but also on the frontlines of resistance to extractivism, while the extractive sector is often gendered as a masculine space. Adopting an intersectional gendered lens to all aspects of extractivism is needed to understand how certain groups of people experience extractive violence and oppression in different ways.

(Eco)feminist movements have been central in calling out destructive extraction, as well as narratives of green growthand green extractivism. Instead, they highlight the many ways to embrace a life-sustaining society beyond extractivism that already exist today.

What is Gender?

Gender is socially constructed. This means it’s not about biology, but the ways that people are socially conditioned, or taught, to take on different roles in society and perform certain gendered identities.

Gender is not just about women, but is about the power relationships between men, women and gender non-conforming peoples.

Gender is fluid, it changes across cultural contexts and times, it is not binary (i.e. just man or woman), it includes trans, intersex and non-binary people.

European colonialism imposed a strict gender binary on colonised cultures, erasing a wide range of genders and sexualities that were common before. Many cultures have more than two genders, for example, the Two Spirit folks in Indigenous North American societies.

As a key organisational aspect of society, gender often determines the division of labour in society, which means who does the productive work (normally waged work done by men) and who does reproductive work (care work and domestic roles, often unpaid work done by women).

The genders that are marginalised by patriarchy (women, girls, trans, intersex and non-binary people) experience the impacts of extractivism first and worst.  Feminist Understandings of Extractivism

Feminism is a political tool, a social movement and an analysis of power and oppression. It works towards equality between all genders and sexes and aims to fight patriarchy.

Ecofeminism is a reaction to how women and nature have been marginalised and devalued in modern patriarchal society, and highlights that all types of domination (capitalism, colonialism, patriarchy) are connected. Therefore, one cannot be eliminated without the others.

Feminists have highlighted that extractivism is not just about the removal of resources from the ground but a specific way of relating to the world, a worldview about relations of power. It is a model of relationships that are non-reciprocal and that destroy, enclose and rupture relations between people and the rest of the living world.

Feminist approaches are important because they emphasise that extractive logics are rooted in oppressive systems of capitalism, colonialism and patriarchy. Therefore, only systemic change and different ways of relating to each other and the more-than-human can resist extractivism and build post-extractive worlds.  Extractivism & Patriarchy

Patriarchy is a social system of domination, control, exploitation, hierarchy and supremacy. Under this system women are oppressed, and their bodies and work are exploited. It is a system, not just about individuals – all genders can act in patriarchal ways and can be hurt by patriarchy.

Patriarchy, like colonialism, divides the world into strict binaries or opposites, with one valued more than the other. This includes man above woman, people above nature, western above non-western, science above tradition, and mind above body. The devalued side of the binary, like women, nature, non-western peoples, are dehumanised and treated like a resource to extract from. Colonialism and capitalist patriarchy are intertwined systems that are at the root of extractivism and extractive violence.

“But women are—and have always been—viewed as disposable. Extractivism was born out of colonialism, which wasn’t just about conquering land. It was also about taking control of women’s bodies, silencing them, and turning them into objects for male consumption. That context impacts everything.”

Winnet Shamuyarira, the project coordinator at WoMin African Alliance

Feminists say this way of thinking about the world is at the root of our social and environmental crises. Extractivism is rooted in this patriarchal worldview, both women and the Earth are treated like an object, to extract from to make profit. Patriarchy and gender inequality has a huge impact on power relations and control of land and natural resources, therefore they are central components when thinking about extractivism.

The concept of territorio/cuerpo/tierra from Latin American Feminist and Indigenous movements is important when thinking through extractivism and patriarchy. It emphasises the interconnectedness of territories, bodies and land. The body and territory are seen as sites of control and colonial extraction, but also as sites of resistance and agency.  Extractivism & Gendered Impacts

Extractive industries do not deliver the “development” they promise instead they leave a host of environmental devastation, displace communities and worsen social, economic and gender inequality. This is because extractivism reproduces capitalism, patriarchy and (neo)colonialism

Most of the socio-environmental costs of the extractive industry are felt by the mainly rural populations of extractive regions – women are often disproportionately impacted. While most jobs are held almost exclusively by men, the negative effects are felt in the household and community, where, due to gender socialisation, women have the most responsibility.

Women are the most impacted by extractive development, not because of inherent vulnerability, but because of systems, like capitalist patriarchy, positioning them as caregivers and enforcing structural inequalities. Patriarchal structures mean women have less access to decision making, land, resources and power. There is a material link.

Not all women experience these impacts in the same way – an intersectional approach is important. Age, race, ethnicity, class, sexuality, migration status, caste, ability, and more are all factors that create different lived experiences for women in relation to extractivism.
Indigenous women and women across the Global South are further impacted by colonialism. 

Research highlighting the gendered impacts of mining can be understood in four categories: environmental impacts, health impacts, community displacement, and violence against women.

Environmental Impacts: Water and Food Sovereignty

The gendered division of labour brings women in contact with natural resources and the environment for subsistence.

Women, as primary caregivers, have a material connection as key stakeholders in small-scale farming and managing natural resources. Women produce up to 80% of the food in the Global South and have important roles in managing water systems and firewood, saving seeds, caring for livestock and in forest conservation.

When extractivism impacts the local environment, women are on the frontline of its impacts.

Women in many cultures are responsible for water. Extractive projects exhaust and contaminate water supplies, with women often being the first to notice that water is drying up or making people sick. This places a heavier care-work burden on younger women, who must travel farther to collect water.

These impacts are especially felt by Indigenous communities and those with subsistence economies that rely on natural resources for hunting, fishing, foraging, medicine and culture.

Health Impacts

The land, air and water contamination caused by extractivism makes communities sick, placing more care-giving burdens on women.

Women’s central role in agriculture and day-to-day tasks that bring them in contact with the environment means they are more exposed to toxic substances and heavy metals.

The attack on nature by mining industries also impacts women’s bodies as the effects of radiation poisoning are most apparent on reproductive systems with increased cases of ovarian cancer, miscarriages and birth defects.

Indigenous women are on the frontline of these impacts. In South Dakota, a toxic legacy of uranium mining disproportionately impacts the health of Indigenous Oglala Lakota women. Women of All Red Nations (WARN)make connections between uranium contamination and the high rates of miscarriage and reproductive cancers among Lakota women.

Extractivism can also increase poverty and food insecurity, which is also gendered. Women are often the first to reduce how much they eat. This further impacts neonatal and maternal health. 

Community Displacement and Loss of Communal Land

Land grabbing, the selling off and occupation of land by the extractive industry, leads to community displacement.

Often, communal lands that women especially depend on for farming, foraging, firewood and water are enclosed (gated and made private). The gendered impact of displacement is heavy, placing a huge physical and mental burden on women who are responsible for their family’s and community’s well-being due to a lack of access to resources and power. It also alters the social fabric both socially and economically.

Extractivism depends on rupturing community cohesion it creates divisions that destroy community care and support practices, which often women depend on more for survival.

Many Indigenous, peasant and rural women have strong ancestral and spiritual ties to the land. Women’s experiences from Zimbabwe detail how the loss of land to extractivism is more than just a material loss – it is a deep spiritual and emotional wound. The land is understood as sacred and ancestral. Women are custodians of traditional knowledge related to these sacred places. Its loss impacts their cultural identity and spiritual well-being.

This destruction of these deep-rooted relationships with place is seen across many extractive contexts and is a tactic of extractive logics that try to turn living landscapes into “natural resources” to extract from.

Violence Against Women (VAW)

The extreme violenceand human rights abuses that accompany extractivism are felt in gender specific ways. Women’s bodies and the land are both exploited and commercialized by extractive violence.

There is a link between sexual violence and extraction zones globally. The transient and mainly male workforce surrounding extractive projects can increase sexual exploitation, trafficking and gender-based violence – this comes with added health risks like HIV. When this violence is intersected with race and ethnicity, it becomes even more brutal.

Many large-scale extractive projects take place in post-conflict contexts or ongoing conflict zones where VAW is normalised, and women’s position is particularly precarious. The militarization and securitisation around extractive projects can increase gender violence – cases of sexual assault carried out by security forces employed by extractive companies are documented globally. For example, security for Barrick Gold raped women at the Porgera mine in Papua New Guinea. 

Extractivism can also increase structural violence towards women. In many cases, extractivism reinforces patriarchal dynamics, like a gender binary and strict gender roles in society. Men often receive cash wages, making women more dependent on them. Women lose cultural, economic and social status. This dynamic can lead to increases in alcoholism, domestic violence and abuse.

Because of patriarchal inequalities in society, women are often left out of decision making and discussions around land and ownership. Compensation is normally paid to the head of households who are predominately recorded as male.

Gender-based violence also increases with displacement, increasing poverty, and a loss of resources, all common consequences of extractive projects.

The extractive sector is represented as highly masculinised, however, women still participate as workers but often in informal, badly paid, precarious roles. This is largely in the Artisan and Small-scale Mining (ASM) sector. Due to gender norms, women who work in mines, sometimes face shame and ostracization by society. This short video, “Nadirah” explores honour and shame for a female informal coal miner in Tajikistan.

Women on the Frontlines of Resistance to Extractivism

Women are much more than passive casualties of extractivism – they are not victims, they are fighters. Women Human Rights and Environmental Defenders are standing up to extractivism across the world.

As noted, women experience the material impacts of extractivism first and the worst, therefore, they are often the first to stand up and resist. For many women, their resistance is seen as an extension of their care-work, what some ecofeminists call Earthcare. Research has focused on women’s motivations, practices and experiences of resistance, from Colombia, to Ecuador, to Greece, to Ireland and the Pacific. 

Often, this resistance is globally networked. Feminist solidarity building beyond borders is linking affected communities internationally against toxic extractivism. Also, a number of collectives and networks organise within grassroots struggles against extractivism from a gendered and feminist perspective.

The Ecofeminaria Initiative: Women in Defense of Territories and The Red Latinoamericana de Mujeres Defensoras de Derechos Sociales y Ambientales, are working in Latin America to foreground the gendered impacts of extractivism and feminist alternatives.

WoMin is a pan-African ecofeminist alliance building solidarity and movements against extractivism as well as woman-centred just alternatives. WoMin highlight the role of peasant women in Sub-Saharan Africa in organising to resist and hold mining corporations to account and reclaim lands taken by extractive industries. 

Feminist anti-extractive movements have also been intersecting with other social justice movements, connecting across struggles that challenge extractive capitalism, colonial and patriarchal violence. This includes movements for health and reproductive justice, drawing on the concept of “body as territory”.

There is also the connection between Indigenous and peasant rights and anti-imperial struggles, as seen from the solidarity of those resisting the Cerrejón coal mine in Colombia with the people of Palestine throughout the ongoing genocide.

The roots of these issues are interconnected. These struggles show it’s more than about a specific mine, but about a system predicated on violence and death. Building strong coalitions across connected issues is an important tool of resistance. Historical and Material Connection

Historically, women have fought against the commercialization of nature, resisting land enclosures and defending communal cultures. Silvia Federici argues that three hundred years of witch hunts in Europe, followed by peasant revolts that accompanied the transition to a capitalist system, were a tool to subjugate and control the power of women.

Colonial violence around the world enforced this gendered system. In turn, this ensured that women provided reproductive work for free, to continue producing and caring for a workforce. Despite this, women have continued to be at the front of the defence of the commons since the inception of colonial capitalism. This includes defending the commons from the enclosures by extractive industries. Globally, due to the gendered division of labour, women rely heavily on commons for subsistence livelihoods and so are often involved in resisting their enclosure. 

Women are more affected due to a lack of resources and power dynamics within society, not an innate vulnerability. Material approaches argue participation of women in resistance movements stems from their closer day-to-day contact and use of Nature and caring for a healthy environment, as well as their greater awareness and respect for community cohesion and solidarity. This material link is key, however, some women make political use of traditional gender roles, such as motherhood, for mobilisation or draw on a biological link between women and the Earth.

There is a diversity of women’s motives to engage in resistance, some traditionally feminine and some not, reminding us there are many ways for a woman to become an activist, not all of which depend on discourses of motherhood and caring.

  Challenges of Resistance

When women stand up, they face a range of gender specific challenges. Not only are women taking on corporate and state power, but they are transgressing traditional gender norms and conventions. Violence or the threat of violence is used to maintain patriarchal power and gender binaries. 

A report by AWID outlines how women face criminalisation, stigmatisation and smear campaigns against them, militarisation by private and public security, and marginalisation in their own communities and movements. Women Earth Defenders face severe threats in many contexts, from sexual violence to murder.

For example, Rosane Santiago Silveira was tortured and murdered in 2019 for her resistance to extractive industries and Dora Recinos Soto was shot dead for her resistance to the El Dorado mine in El Salvador. The role of women in resisting extractivism is often minimised and sidelined, even within movements, drawing attention to the ways women resist is key. 

Further, resistance to mining is riddled with invisible work, which is often done by women. Because of the way women are socialised they are often more responsible for care work, emotional labour, building relationships, administrative tasks and more. Not romanticising resistance but also acknowledging the added burden on women is important. There is a need to emphasise inequalities around gender including the invisibility of women’s contributions and the silencing of their concerns in anti-mining activism. 

On the other hand, women’s involvement in anti-extractive resistance can also transform traditional gender norms. Resistance in Greece altered the patriarchal structure of society and rhythm of everyday life as women took on leadership roles and care work was redistributed throughout the community.

Women’s resistance can generate new ways of thinking about the world, for example, the concept of territorio/cuerpo/tierra  emerges from Guatemalan Indigenous activists’ opposition to the El Escobal mine.

This brings us to the varied feminist alternatives for a post-extractive world. 

Feminist Futures Beyond Extractivism

A feminist perspective means taking a structural approach.

In many mainstream discussions of gender and the extractive industries, the focus falls on including women in the perceived benefits of extractivism. The argument goes: the extractive sector needs legal and regulatory reform to address gender inequality, so women can participate more fully in the system. This neoliberal viewpoint, which focuses on individuals rather than the system, argues: if we incorporate more women into the current system, things would be better.

In contrast to this, a feminist approach is systemic and structural. It sees the whole extractivist model and worldview as the issue: we need to challenge the colonial and capitalist roots of the extractivist system. If a mining company is still structured around pursuing endless growth, with the human rights and environmental injustices that go along with that, having more female CEOs is not a solution. 

Instead, grassroots feminist movements around the world are proposing and enacting alternative development models to extractivism. This includes a huge array from agroecology, to commoning, community-owned energy, seed saving, projects that centre traditional and Indigenous ecological knowledge, Rights of Nature movements, solidarity economies based on care and more.

Feminist approaches call for system change, not green capitalism, technological fixes or eco-modernisation.

This map prepared by the Latin American Network of Women Defenders of Social and Environmental Rights shows the impacts on women from extractivism across Latin America, but also shows women’s role in building alternatives.

The ONAMIAP Women initiative in Peru is working towards a just energy transition that is based in community and ancestral knowledge and challenges extractive capitalism.

Adivasi Indigenous women in India are using traditional ecological knowledge to advance food sovereignty and regenerate forests in the face of extractive threats. 

Feminist movements have been thinking about how to relate to the land and each other differently for a long time. We see this through the Beijing Declaration of Indigenous women 1995, Universal Declaration on the Rights of Mother Earth, 2010 and in September 2015, the Indigenous Women of the Americas signed a Defend Mother Earth Treaty against extractive industry. It stated that:

“While opposing extractive industries, women human rights defenders are advancing alternative economic and social models based on the stewardship of land and common resources in order to preserve life, thereby contributing to the emergence of new paradigms”.

This resistance to extractivism is making a systematic critique and calling for a move away from growth-orientated capitalist and extractivist-based models.

Feminist movements against extractivism demonstrate the power of collective action and solidarity, pushing back against the neoliberalisation of environmentalism that reduces action to individual lifestyle changes. Feminist approaches mean revaluing care and embedding it into all our relationships, with each other, human and non-human. Central is valuing relationships and different ways of relating.

Indigenous feminist scholar activist Leanne Betasamosake Simpson highlights that:

“The alternative to extractivism is deep reciprocity. It’s respect, it’s relationship, it’s responsibility, and it’s local”.

These alternative visions of non-extractive relationship building exist in movements that say no to mining and yes to life. 

Conclusion

Applying a gender perspective to all injustices from extractivism to mining projects, from supply chains to resistance movements, is important.

Not all women are the same. An intersectional lens is key to understanding the different ways women are impacted and resist. Beyond women as passive victims or romanticised saviours, we need to understand how specific contexts shape the gendered impacts of extractivism. Women are the most impacted by extractive development, not because of inherent vulnerability, but because of systems, like colonialism and capitalist patriarchy, positioning them as caregivers and enforcing structural inequalities. 

Feminist perspectives highlight that systemic change is needed, not technofixes, green extractivism or green growth. Instead, alternative economic models that centre care and the wellbeing of people and planet are crucial.

The struggle to dismantle patriarchy and advance gender justice is not an ‘add on’, it must be part of our movement to resist extractivism globally. 

The post Gender, Patriarchy and Extractivism appeared first on Yes to Life No to Mining.

On Transitions, Resistance, and Alternatives to Lithium Mining in Catamarca, Argentina Article by Asociación BePe Explore BePe's campaigns here

We often hear that the “energy transition” is absolutely necessary to replace fossil fuels with other energy sources that will reduce carbon emissions—in other words, to decarbonize the global economy. However, this “energy transition” does not reflect the voices of a large portion of the world’s population; rather, it is a proposal from the Global North, which bears primary responsibility for the unprecedented multidimensional crisis the planet is currently facing. Furthermore, this proposal has too many limitations to be considered a true transition, as it involves the cumulative use of energy sources. So-called “renewable energies” are added to traditional sources, as evidenced by the increase in global oil consumption (1). Hence, we speak of an accumulation of energy sources rather than a transition toward “renewable and clean” ones. These are, therefore, false solutions to the climate crisis, which entail an intensification of raw material extraction in the Global South and, consequently, of the colonialism that has shaped the still-prevalent international division of labor. There is no proposal to break with the capitalist logic of accumulation or the imperial way of life; thus, it is nothing more than capitalism dressed in green.

The so-called energy transition also requires enormous quantities of critical minerals, not only for “renewable” energy but also for the manufacture of electric vehicles, batteries, mobile and digital devices, and the defense industry. These minerals—notably lithium, graphite, cobalt, nickel, manganese, and rare earth elements—are considered critical or strategic because they are deemed essential for economic security and defense, and because their supply chains are vulnerable to disruptions. An important fact regarding these minerals is China’s dominance in both the supply chain and the processing and manufacturing of batteries, electric vehicles, and wind and solar power plants, which led countries in the Global North—primarily the European Union and the United States—to deploy various strategies to secure and diversify their supply, seeking to break their dependence on “sole suppliers,” namely the Asian giant.

If we focus on Argentina, the most significant strategic mineral is lithium. The country’s inclusion in the so-called “lithium triangle”—along with Bolivia and Chile—positions it as one of the leading producers of this mineral, which political leaders view as a key source of foreign exchange to bolster the national treasury’s meager reserves. This view, of course, overlooks the irreversible impacts that lithium mining has on highly fragile ecosystems and on ancestral ways of life.

The push for the extraction of this mineral led Argentina to establish the National Lithium Roundtable in 2021, involving three northern provinces—Catamarca, Salta, and Jujuy—which were joined by the national government, with the aim of working together on its extraction and processing. Thus, from a hegemonic perspective, critical minerals such as lithium—and also copper—have become key pillars for the country’s “development.” However, the people know that what mining offers is not development, but rather the destruction of the conditions necessary for life to continue.

The far-right government’s commitment to expanding extractive projects in the country is evident in the approval of the RIGI (Incentive Regime for Large Investments), which grants significant benefits to corporations—primarily extractive ones—such as tax breaks and fiscal stability for 30 years.

If we take a closer look at the province of Catamarca, we’ll see that it has a long history of “mining.” The Alumbrera project—the country’s first open-pit mine for copper, gold, and molybdenum, located in Belén—and the lithium mining operation at the Salar del Hombre Muerto in Antofagasta de la Sierra date back to 1997. The results of nearly 30 years of mining reveal profoundly negative impacts: in the northern part of the province, lithium mining dried up a river vital to the communities living there; and, in turn, the province never achieved the long-awaited development through mining; quite the contrary, after decades it remains one of the poorest provinces in the country. Nor has the “social license” sought by companies and desired by governments been achieved. The resistance to the MARA (Minera Alumbrera Agua Rica) project, led by the El Algarrobo Assembly of Andalgalá, is clear evidence that mining lacks a social license. For decades, the response of the government and the companies to this resistance has been the persecution, prosecution, and repression of these dissenting voices.

Over the past decade, amid the boom in lithium mining—which is “necessary for the transition”—the Catamarca government has sought to reinforce the province’s identity as a “mining” region. Among the many projects to extract this mineral is Tres Quebradas, owned by the Chinese company Zijin Mining and its subsidiary Liex S.A., which operates in the salt flat of the same name and owns the processing plant located at the entrance to the municipality of Fiambalá, in the Tinogasta department. This project, which began production in 2025, is located in the region of high-Andean and Puna lagoons in Catamarca, recognized under the Ramsar Convention. These are highly fragile ecosystems that are already suffering the impacts of brine extraction from the lagoons, including water imbalances, the drying up of wetlands, a drop in lagoon water levels, disruption of wildlife habitats, and threats to grazing and agriculture for the communities living there.

From the perspective of social impacts, drawing on experience with Zijin Mining, we highlight the different ways in which Chinese companies establish themselves in a given territory, compared to corporations from other countries. Their penetration into the community is very strong and results in political and social interference and cultural invasion, through the organization of sociocultural events, tournaments, sports competitions, and celebrations; through partnerships with educational institutions; by taking over many of the state’s social functions; by participating in political power structures — such as the opening of provincial legislative sessions; and by imposing an overwhelming presence of Chinese cultural elements.

 

Photos by BePe: Greenwashing signs by Zijin Mining in Fianbalá, Argentina

As the company’s presence became more pervasive, the idea took hold among the population that they could turn to the company to meet certain needs — for example, to obtain construction materials, T-shirts for clubs, educational supplies for schools, and supplies for hospitals.

Although the expectations generated by the company’s presence in the region were very high from the moment it set up operations in 2016, various conflicts and a shift in the company’s own stance began to undermine those expectations among a segment of the population. The hope for “progress” was replaced by frustrations rooted in the realization that “development” would not come from that source. Notable among these conflicts were strikes and roadblocks organized by workers denouncing labor abuses and demanding improved working conditions and higher wages; allegations of sexual violence and abuse committed by a company employee against a female coworker; and claims regarding unpaid debts to local suppliers (2). The social unrest generated by these conflicts and allegations, combined with the company’s shift in policy — which, once it was established, significantly curtailed support for community projects under the banner of corporate social responsibility — led to a gradual collapse of expectations for improvements in the living conditions of the local population.

However, not everyone in Fiambalá was convinced from the moment the company set up operations that it would bring the long-awaited development. Since 2016, the “Fiambalá Despierta” Assembly has been denouncing that mining, in any form, is synonymous with the destruction of ways of life and territories. The members of the assembly—mostly women—and the rural communities living in the towns near Fiambalá know that “development” means something else: defending agroecological production, preserving and exchanging native and heirloom seeds, and not being fooled by the new “smoke and mirrors” that accompany the Global North’s proposals for energy transition. We know all too well what the plundering and destruction of the commons mean. History is our greatest witness.

Photo by BePe: Seed fair in Catamarca, promoting the already living alternatives to mining, seeds that sustain life

References:

1. https://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics

2. Some of the protests by neighbors and environmentalists against the company, as well as reports of poor working conditions and the violence suffered by the women who work there, are documented in the following posts:         

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=2169052680572092                                                                     

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tAGFyE79HUE&t=86s

Is your community, organization, or network interested in becoming a YLNM member? Would you like to know more about us? Please send an email enquiry to membership[at]yestolifenotomining.org

Subscribe to our bi-monthly newsletter Suscríbase a nuestro boletín

Yes to Life No to Mining global solidarity network since 2012 | Contact Us

• Follow
• Follow
• Follow
• Follow

The post On Transitions, Resistance, and Alternatives to Lithium Mining in Catamarca, Argentina appeared first on Yes to Life No to Mining.

Tanzania’s aviation sector is seeing rapid growth, with investment being put into expanding airport infrastructure and an increase in flights. Against this backdrop, End Fossil Occupy Tanzania, ran a youth engagement workshop to make the case for sustainable transport systems and to raise awareness of the devastating environmental impacts of airport expansion. In this blog post…

Source

South Africa is facing a defining crossroads: do we continue pushing investment in climate-change-causing fossil fuels – which may harm people and the environment, and could threaten livelihoods – or do we transition toward more sustainable energy? By bringing the Climate Change Act into law, it is clear that there is recognition of the need to address this crisis and protect vulnerable communities. Why then do we continue to see more fossil fuel legislation being proposed, such as the South African National Petroleum Company (SANPC) Bill, which will likely lock the country into new fossil fuels and could risk the country not meeting its global climate commitments under the UNFCCC. 

As a young South African, I am concerned about what this legislation could mean for the future and I have many questions, most critical of which is, where are we heading to as a country? The sixth IPCC and the International Energy Agency NetZero by 2050 report concluded that, if we are to protect vulnerable communities already impacted by climate change, there should be no new investments in fossil fuels. Communities are already feeling the impacts; severe weather conditions have caused major damage to property and over 400 people have already lost their lives in KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape. 

While section 7 of the Climate Change Act mandates every organ of state to review, align and harmonise policy – to ensure that this growing crisis is taken into account – it is difficult to understand why we still continue to see legislation proposed that could lead to more loss and more damage in vulnerable communities who are ill-prepared to shoulder further climate impacts.

Governance and Energy Security 

As a result of ongoing global geopolitical tensions, ordinary South Africans continue to be impacted by fluctuating energy costs. It hits us in our pockets when we must pay more for transport and other essentials. This is one of the key reasons we keep questioning government’s ongoing push to keep South Africa dependent on fossil fuels and for what seems to be an unnecessarily slow uptake of renewable technologies. 

With the SANPC Bill – currently before Parliament – government not only seeks to accelerate more fossil fuels but is also pushing for South Africa to have its own local production of oil and gas. The country’s dependence on fossil fuels also means that citizens will continue being exposed to volatile markets. From our point of view, however, the current situation – including the geopolitical impact on fuel prices and increasing extreme weather events – and see these as warnings, and instead prioritize developing legislation that will drive investments in wind, solar and hydro energy.

Another major concern is that 90% of South Africa’s oceans remain leased-off to oil and gas companies for exploration, while simultaneously being challenged by indigenous coastal communities – who call for the protection of their livelihoods from the risks related to oil and gas exploration and drilling. In 2025, 147 fishing communities were recorded – totalling more than 28 000 fisher households. This proposed petroleum company legislation is decades too late and would not be fit for what is needed in this moment. Instead, this legislation could undo all the effort put in to protect small-scale fisher rights. 

There is no place in a just transition for such restrictive, short-sighted legislation because communities must benefit in the process. While there are those who may see this state-owned company as a silver bullet to our energy problems, governance issues remain a critical concern.  When it comes to PetroSA particularly, the real question is who will carry the decommissioning and rehabilitation liability, which is estimated to cost upwards of R9.8 billion? Will South African taxpayers find themselves footing the bill of decisions they didn’t agree to?

Energy Sovereignty Must Begin with Communities 

We can’t speak of the energy transition and the importance of grounding the transition in justice and making sure that it benefits communities but continue to see proposed legislation that may only exacerbate and entrench communities deeper into poverty.  Energy prices and electricity costs remain at an all-time high, affecting citizens and making energy access an even bigger issue. Communities must define and determine the type of development they want. This must be accompanied by policy and legislation that will ensure that there is local economic development and meaningful participation without risking the livelihoods of coastal communities. 

As climate change exacerbates it is important that government puts forward laws that will ensure communities are adapting and can withstand future climate shocks. But, maybe more importantly, our laws must ensure that we do what we can to protect future generations.

END

By: Lisa Makaula, Advocacy Lead at The Green Connection

The post SOUTH AFRICA’S ENERGY CROSSROADS: RENEWABLE, INCLUSIVE ENERGY OR FUTURE FOSSIL FUEL LIABILITIES? appeared first on The Green Connection.