Earth Day
On the 4th of January 2016, Leonardo Amador woke up to bulldozers uprooting the land surrounding his community in Choluteca, Honduras.
The extractors were there to make space for another giant solar energy farm of over 130,000 solar panels. A mega-project financed by Norwegian capital and the Central American Development Bank.
Around the world, increasing demands for land and natural resources are driving unscrupulous businesses into new territories, devastating hundreds of thousands of people like Leonardo. It is particularly clear in Honduras, where for the past 20 years, foreign solar energy companies have been granted significant concessions. Private investment into green energy plants in the country has skyrocketed since 2009, when laws to protect environmentally fragile areas from megaprojects were scrapped.
Communities affected by the projects say they are not informed or consulted about the projects. Compensation, jobs, and much-needed infrastructure are not given by the companies. And environmental impacts are not studied.
The energy generated by the solar panels is not for Leonardo’s community. They will not see the projected profits of $15million USD.
Choluteca is one of the hottest areas of Central America - mean daily temperatures sit at 36C, and droughts are common. The communities fear that the solar energy farms and deforestation will worsen things - raising the temperatures further, causing more droughts, and making hunting more difficult.
Leonardo took a stand. To defend his land; to protect the forests, water and local wildlife. He and his neighbours came together and set up a resistance camp to repel the extractors.
Every day, more and more ordinary people are finding themselves on the frontline of the global fight against climate change, exploitation, and pollution. They find that standing up to businesses can put them in danger.
Undeterred, the companies behind the project bribed local leaders to sow division, and accused 32 members of the resistance camp of violent agitation and obstruction.
Businesses and States that benefit from the status quo often seek to silence activists who pose a threat to their profits. Thousands of activists face daily criminalisation, stigmatization, threats and violence - but they refuse to be silenced.
Leonardo and the camp continued their resistance unabated.
"We will not sell ourselves for a bag of cement”
PBI is there for defenders like Leonardo when they need us most. Our initiatives and support help to make defending human rights less dangerous.
5 years on, Leonardo and the resistance camp continue to resist hydroelectric and solar energy plants. He has been elected as President of the local council and has vowed to continue the defence of land in Honduras - for his community and those across the country.
Resisting green energy projects is not easy. But it is important. The shareholders who benefit from these projects are so often the same ones benefiting from fossil fuels: a minority whose interests lie not in fighting climate breakdown, but in finding new ways to exploit our earth for profit.
PBI believe that human rights have to be at the centre of our green energy transition. We stand alongside our grassroots partners, to keep them alive and help their work thrive, supporting them to build their capacity and improve their safety.
Help us support local networks of community activists to demand human rights and environmental health be valued over shareholder profits. Join PBI UK today.
