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Dear John,
This Indigenous Peoples’ Day, Urgent Action Fund for Women's Human Rights celebrates the resilience and perseverance of all Indigenous communities who tirelessly work to sustain and protect our lands, water, and air. Today, we honor and uplift the voices of Indigenous women, trans and non-binary activists fighting to reshape our world towards climate justice for generations to come!
At UAF, we support grassroots Indigenous movements and human rights defenders who are working at the intersection of climate, environmental, and gender justice to make visible the impacts of climate change and to protect lands, livelihoods, wildlife, and water.
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Watch the Myski Local Civic Organizations' “10 Stories About Coal”
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We are proud to partner with grantees like the Myski Local Civic Organization “Revival of Kazas Village and Shor People”, a Siberian, Indigenous, women-led organization. They are taking on the Russian coal industry and uplifting Indigenous rights in Siberia. Yana Tannagasheva, Co-Founder of the Myski Local Civic Organization, is an Indigenous Shor woman who is leading the fight against the Russian coal industry. She became an activist in response to the expansion of coal mining onto the ancestral lands of her community.
An estimated 70% of the Russian coal is mined in the Kemerovo region, which is home to the Shor people. This massive coal mine continues to harm the people and the wildlife that inhabit the region, worsening the effects of the current climate crisis. Today, the Shor people no longer have access to clean water because of the open pit and the coal slurry contamination from the mine. In addition to the worsening climate and environmental impact, the coal industry violates Indigenous human rights. They are often forcibly displaced and cannot go back home due to government-enforced land access restrictions and checkpoints.
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“Do I miss home? Every day I wonder how they are doing there, in far off Siberia, with the dust, the black coal, the coal slurry flowing in the rivers.”
Yana Tannagasheva, Co-Founder of Myski Local Civic Organization
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UAF’s partner Myski Local Civic Organization has taken their fight internationally against those who purchase Russian coal calling for divestment from Russian coal industries and demanding a transition to sustainable renewable energy as an alternative. They have identified a strategic domestic and international approach to apply pressure to those who purchase coal and the Russian government that's reliant on coal export.
Follow Yana Tannagasheva and the Myski Local Civic Organizations' work as they share “10 Stories About Coal” on their YouTube channel.
The encroachment of Indigenous land and intimidation tactics are not unique to the Shor people. Across the world, many Indigenous people are defending their land and demanding accountability from governments and corporations on the harm of extractive industries. One of the most important ways we can commemorate Indigenous People’s Day is to honor the stewards of the environment. Let’s live as they do and become caretakers of the lands, oceans, waterways, and air!
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