Across the Amazon Basin, women are organizing in defense of life, rights, and territories, and are a critical part of the front lines movement resisting increasing threats such as mining.

Mining is an industry riddled with rights violations, pollution, and deforestation. Amazonian Women Defenders are taking the helm of anti-mining movements sweeping Ecuador and Brazil and advocating for their right to decide what happens on their lands. They are leading the resistance against other extractive industries, too.

In the face of the serious threats to the Amazon that we see today, from agribusiness to fossil fuels to narcotrafficking, Women Defenders are guiding solutions.

This year they are calling upon all of us to listen to their voices and show our solidarity to imagine a future where all Indigenous and traditional territories are free of mining. In this spirit of collective action, we want to introduce you to four of these women.