Collective Action Protects Yasuní National Park

Grantee Highlight

Image Credit: Carlos Granja Medranda

In 2023, Global Greengrants awarded more than $9M in climate justice grants to 833 groups in 207 countries.

In August 2023, the population of Ecuador voted through a national referendum to halt all current and future oil extraction in Yasuní National Park. This significant win demonstrates the effectiveness of supporting grassroots initiatives long-term and giving not just one-off grants to one grassroots group, but supporting multiple allied groups over time.

In recent years, Global Greengrants Fund has supported multiple organizations, including Acción Ecológica, Colectivo YASUNIDOS, and Goldman Prize winner Nemonte Nenquimo of the Ceibo Alliance, who participated in the broader coalition that made this referendum possible. Yasuní National Park, which covers more than 2.5 million acres of land, is one of the most critically biodiverse areas of the Amazon rainforest. It was designated a world biosphere reserve by UNESCO in 1989, and it is a home for Indigenous Peoples like the Tagaeri and Taromenani, who have lived there in voluntary isolation for hundreds of years.

Despite how critical the park is both regionally and globally, the State of Ecuador has run oil drilling projects there since 2016. These projects have threatened the livelihoods of Indigenous Peoples, led to biodiversity loss, and contributed to global temperature rises and fossil fuel dependence.

The national referendum was the result of decades of work by both Indigenous and environmental movements in the region, especially urban youth movements. The movements' first petition in the 2010s faced years of administrative blocks and court proceedings to prove the petition's legitimacy, until finally, in 2023, the Constitutional Court ordered that a countrywide referendum be carried out.

After months of campaigning across Ecuador, in August 2023, the referendum succeeded-Ecuadorians voted to halt the development of all new oil wells in Yasuní National Park. The vote corresponded with a second referendum in Quito that blocked gold mining in the Chocó Andino, a sensitive highland biosphere. The referendum made Ecuador one of the first countries in the world to set limits on natural resource extraction through a democratic vote.

"In some way, this news came as a breath of fresh air, suggesting that it's still possible to work hands-on with people and foster these movements through active participation. In its own right, Yasuní has become a beacon for these battles for a just transition that honors both nature and the rights of Indigenous communities."

- Esperanza Martínez, an organizer with Global Greengrants grantee partner Acción Ecológica

While challenges still remain as organizers ensure the government complies with the referendum, which is increasingly difficult given the country's current upsurge in violence and unrest, the moment was a huge win for climate movements around the world. It is an incredible example of the power that movements have to galvanize millions of people into action against extraction.

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