[1]Photo: A happy-looking cotton-top tamarin monkey holding a branch

John -- I wanted to share great news and massive thanks from
our local partners in Colombia: we've officially helped them DOUBLE the
size of Los Tities de San Juan Forest Reserve, home to the last 7000
cotton-top tamarins left in the wild! 

It's not just a lifeline for endangered species. The Forest Reserve also
benefits local communities with jobs and family-oriented educational
activities. And besides that, it's another reminder that we can achieve
beautiful things together.

Thank you again!

[ [link removed] ]If you're available on Friday 22 March, please join this special Zoom
call to learn more about the project in Colombia.

And in case you missed these other updates, here's a recap of some of our
impact last year:

 



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When a massive international corporation tries to steal land from
indigenous communities – we’re there. And we stop them!

Together. 

That’s what each small donation does: builds a world-class legal team to
go toe to toe with a timber giant, documents traditional lands to shut
down a palm oil predator, bans a toxic chemical that gave kids cancer and
more! 

The work we’re doing transforms lives, and it’s thanks to each and every
member of this vibrant community that these partners are able to celebrate
this year. Here’s more info on what we’ve done together and how we can
still help:

We’re protecting Indigenous land against timber giant Samling

In Malaysia, when the small grassroots organisation Save Rivers exposed
Samling for destroying Indigenous land and pushing endangered gibbons
towards extinction, the timber giant launched a lawsuit designed to
silence and bankrupt the small group. Ekō members rushed to chip in and
help fund the legal costs so they could keep fighting back.

And it worked! Our financial support and public outcry forced the company
to drop the case.

Now we have to keep fighting to get the forest permanently protected while
the momentum is on our side!

[ [link removed] ]Chip in to help them keep up their fight to protect their land.

[2]Indigenous rights defenders gather in front of Miri High Court, they
are holding banners and placards. Photo courtesy of The Borneo
Project.Indigenous rights defenders gather in front of Miri High Court.
Photo courtesy of The Borneo Project.

We’re helping the Moi people protect their land

Predatory palm oil companies announced they wanted to tear up a New York
City-sized swathe of Indonesian rainforest traditionally inhabited and
preserved by the Moi Indigenous people – and where birds of paradise,
endangered fish, and rare tree kangaroos thrive. 

Our community sprung into action by supporting Pusaka, a local NGO working
alongside the Moi people to win legally recognised rights for their land.
Our donations are helping them carefully map the land using GPS and then
document everything, including hunting and fishing patterns, and complete
surveys of historical sites. 

All of this is essential evidence to demonstrate to the central government
in Indonesia that the land belongs to the Moi people – and it wouldn’t
have been collected as thoroughly and as urgently without us! There’s
still time to help power the project:

[ [link removed] ]Chip in to help the Moi people protect their land. 

[4]Moi Indigenous people in traditional dress at a gathering in Sorong,
Indonesia
Moi Indigenous people in traditional dress at a gathering in Sorong,
Indonesia. Photo courtesy of Pusaka.

We’re stopping cancer-causing chemicals from being used in Costa Rica

In Costa Rica, an amazing group called EcoCipreses asked for help to force
the government to ban a toxic pesticide that has been contaminating their
water and poisoning their families and friends for years. Through
thousands of donations and a 100,000 person petition, we were able to make
this issue go truly viral in Costa Rica, shine a spotlight on the chemical
and win!

Our partners credit our publicity push for “finally getting the attention
we’ve been trying to get for years.” We also supported the local community
with its advocacy efforts – drafting letters, designing/printing
materials, and delivering our signatures to government officials in San
Jose. All of this pressure worked – and scored a major public health
victory for all Costa Ricans – as the President signed the ban into law
just weeks ago!

[5]Isabel of EcoCipreses delivering our petition signatures to
Congresswoman Kattia Cambronero Aguiluz outside of the Costan Rican
Congress in San Jose
EcoCipreses delivering our petition signatures to Congresswoman Kattia
Cambronero Aguiluz in San Jose

We’re fighting to keep Glyphosate off the shelves

Thousands of Ekō members came together to end glyphosate’s presence in
Europe. We donated to hire an advocacy expert who lobbied decision-makers
in Brussels and marshalled civil society groups across Europe to ramp up
the pressure in their home countries. Our donations helped run strategic
ads in key newspapers across Europe, and together with Pesticide Action
Network Europe (PAN), WeMove, and Avaaz, we delivered our
2.5-million-strong glyphosate ban petition to leading European Commission
officials.

The Commission had to twist the rules to get around our massive wave of
opposition and now our partners are suing them for failing to follow their
own process. You can help power this next step by clicking here:

[ [link removed] ]Click here to donate to it and help keep this toxic poison off the
shelves!

[7]Dozens of supporters and campaigners from Ekō, Pesticide Action Network
Europe (PAN), WeMove, and Avaaz with banners and placards outside the
European Commission to deliver 2.5 million signatures against the renewal
of glyphosate.
Dozens of supporters and campaigners from the Stop Glyphosate Coalition
with banners and placards outside the European Commission to deliver 2.5
million signatures against the renewal of glyphosate

 

And that’s just the beginning of the story of how our community has
powered dozens of local partners to win battles they never thought
possible. 

Each of our moments of hope, of solidarity, of generosity when we click to
contribute a small amount to Ekō multiply into this kind of life-changing
impact. And because of those moments, we end 2023 with a sense of pride,
of accomplishment, and determination.



With gratitude for everything you have done this year and excitement for
the year to come!
Emma and the team at Ekō


P.S. If you’d like to help us continue our work fighting back against
corporate greed, [ [link removed] ]click here to make a donation. No matter how big or
small it is, our work is fueled by donations from members like you.

 

 

Ekō is a worldwide movement of people like you, working together to hold corporations accountable for their actions and forge a new, sustainable path for our global economy.

Please help keep Ekō strong by chipping in $3. [link removed]