In recognition of the critical role women play in shaping water solutions and the support needed to grow their impact, International Rivers partnered with Women’s Earth Alliance and launched the first Women and Rivers Accelerator Program in 2022 to strengthen the global movement of women river defenders. The first accelerator brought together 23 women river…
Read MoreThese women are using their voices and leadership to help save the planet
International Rivers’ 2023 IWD Week List with some of the inspirational women Environmentalists you should know and follow Join International Rivers in celebrating #WomensHistoryMonth and #InternationalWomensDay this week. Women play critical leadership roles in providing, managing and safeguarding water and other natural resources. Yet too often, governments ignore women’s lives and perspectives when making decisions…
Read MoreProtecting Rights of the Himba Indigenous Community and Kunene River through Community Protocols
by Siziwe Mota, International Rivers Africa Program Director of International Rivers and introduction by Nalori Chakma, South Asia Senior Programme Coordinator, Transboundary Rivers of South Asia Introduction Globally, Indigenous rights to self-determination in relation to their rights to lands, territories and resources have been gaining support and attention at different levels. However, despite this a…
Read MoreOrganizations request new IDB President respect human rights and prioritize environmental protections
This week, International Rivers joined a group of organizations from Latin America and the United States in addressing a letter to the president of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Ilan Goldfajn. The open letter asks that the Bank strengthen its work by ensuring respect for human rights and the environment, as well as by creating…
Read MoreA Note from our Co-Executive Directors
Dear River Defenders, This is a moment for International Rivers and the river protection movement that we must grab. That’s what occurs to us as we think back on this first year of our joint leadership as co-directors at International Rivers, and forward to what lies ahead. In the past year, with your incredible support,…
Read MoreOpen letter: Counting on new hydropower in Europe is irresponsible
100+ NGOs write to EU negotiators asking them to protect Europe’s rivers from new hydropower deployment in the revised Renewable Energy directive. Ahead of the next political trilogue on the revision of the Renewable Energy Directive, more than 100 NGOs are sending an open letter to co-legislators from the European Parliament, European Commission and Council Presidency, asking…
Read MoreInternational NGOs Call for Release of Prominent Environmental Defender in Vietnam One Year After 5-Year Prison Sentence
PRESS RELEASE | International NGOs Call for Release of Prominent Environmental Defender in Vietnam One Year After 5-Year Prison Sentence Environmental Lawyer Dang Dinh Bach Is One of Several Silenced by the Vietnamese Government After Attempts to Wean the Country Off of Coal and Protect Communities from Public Health Hazards For Immediate Release: January 24, 2023 MEDIA…
Read MoreInternational Rivers’ statement of concern over treatment of Yanomami children in Brazil
International Rivers notes with alarm the troubling recent reports over the plight of Yanomami children in Brazil, many of whom have suffered mistreatment, malnutrition, and died from preventable diseases. “The violence against and mistreatment of the Yanomami people has been taking place over many years. The Brazilian authorities must urgently act to stop this now…
Read MoreProtegiendo el río Futaleufú; Nueva herramienta legal garantizará el valor turístico y ecosistémico de la zona
Por Leonardo Peña Garcia, Futaleufú Riverkeeper. English version here. El pasado sábado 3 de diciembre se realizó el Lanzamiento de la temporada de turismo aventura en Futaleufú, una de las comunas de la Patagonia y principal destino de turistas nacionales y extranjeros. El río Futaleufú es uno de estos puntos de interés, donde año a…
Read MoreDefending Rivers and Rights at the Biodiversity COP15
By Bonnie Barclay International Rivers joined partners at the UN Biodiversity COP15 meeting (7-19 December 2022) in Montreal. After repeated delays due to the pandemic, decision-makers, country delegates, civil society organizations, and other institutions finally came together to discuss, negotiate and shape the post-2020 global biodiversity framework. International Rivers and our partners’ message was clear:…
Read MoreBCG Economy and Apec: Just empty rhetoric?
Originally published in the Bangkok Post By Pai Deetes The Apec Leaders’ Summit in Bangkok this week includes an agreement to work toward the “Bangkok Goals” on Bio-economy, Circular Economy and Green (BCG) Economy beyond national borders. Many have raised have raised the question of whether the Thai government, as host to the summit, genuinely…
Read More