In a ruling issued on Monday, the First Regional Federal Court of Brazil upheld the suspension of an environmental license for Belo Sun's massive gold mining project that would carve into the heart of the Brazilian Amazon. If implemented, the project would be the largest open-pit gold mine in Brazilian history.

With support from Amazon Watch and other partners, local communities have been organizing and insisting on their right to say no to mining in their territories.

The court ruling is a crucial victory for civil society and Amazonian traditional communities at a time in which Belo Sun and other international corporations are taking aggressive steps to expand mining in Brazil. The co-optation of Brazilian institutions by the mining industry makes resistance difficult and dangerous, and earth defenders who speak out against it face threats and repression.