Press Releases

BlackRock's Agribusiness Engagement Guidelines Draw Scrutiny from Environmental Groups

Amazon Watch and Friends of the Earth demand real action on deforestation and human rights

"BlackRock is clearly feeling the pressure from the climate and indigenous rights movement to align its investment practices with a sustainable world, which includes how it engages with and invests in agribusiness," said Moira Birss, Climate and Finance Director at Amazon Watch. "Its new statement identifies many of the key risk factors of the industry but does not include any actual commitments."

Joaquin Phoenix Makes Film with Extinction Rebellion and Amazon Watch

Sônia Guajajara, Executive Coordinator of the Association of Brazil's Indigenous Peoples said: "This film is very important for us at this moment. It demonstrates the artists' engagement in Amazon protection by showing the key role indigenous peoples play in defending the forests, the planet, and life itself."

Illegal Bill to Permit Mining on Indigenous Territories Proposed by Bolsonaro to Brazil's Congress

"Illegal mining and illegal prospecting go beyond environmental degradation and deforestation," said Christian Poirier, Amazon Watch's Program Director. "These activities provoke a breakdown of the social and cultural balance, which is already occurring in indigenous territories."

BlackRock Issues Investment Stewardship Statement on Agribusiness

"BlackRock is clearly feeling the pressure from the climate and indigenous rights movement to align its investment practices with a sustainable world, which includes how it engages with and invests in agribusiness," said Moira Birss, Climate and Finance Director at Amazon Watch.

BlackRock Responds to Demands for Stronger Climate Action with Bold New Commitments

The company still remains the largest investor in coal, oil, gas, and the companies driving deforestation

"This announcement is a major step in the right direction for BlackRock," said Moira Birss, Finance Campaign Director at Amazon Watch. However, It still leaves questions about how it plans to address the fact that it is the world's biggest investor in deforestation."

The Climate Movement Is Going After Wall Street

A new effort, Stop the Money Pipeline, aims to end the financing of fossil fuels

A coalition of some of the nation's leading climate, youth, and Indigenous organizations launched a major new mobilization, Stop the Money Pipeline, that will pressure banks, insurance companies and asset managers to stop financing fossil fuels and deforestation and start respecting human rights and Indigenous sovereignty.

COP25: Amazonian Indigenous Leaders Respond to the Governments of Ecuador and Peru and Share Conclusions on the Summit

Hearing a contradiction between what is being said and what is being done, indigenous leaders call for global support to stop new oil drilling, mining exploration, and deforestation in the Amazon Sacred Headwaters

Madrid, Spain – Indigenous leaders representing twenty nationalities from Ecuador and Peru called for global support to stop oil drilling and mining in the Amazon Sacred Headwaters region – the most biodiverse terrestrial ecosystem on the planet.

Indigenous Leaders Call for Global Support to Stop New Oil Drilling and Mining in the Heart of the Amazon at COP 25

Madrid, Spain – Indigenous leaders representing 20 nationalities from Ecuador and Peru called for global support to stop oil drilling and mining in the Amazon Sacred Headwaters region – the most biodiverse terrestrial ecosystem on the planet. A new report released today demonstrates that this is more than a regional issue: this is a global crisis that endangers the world's 1.5° C goal.

Global Human Rights and Environmental Communities Condemn the House Arrest of U.S. Human Rights Lawyer Steven Donziger

Prominent organizations call for Donziger's immediate release and warn of chilling effect on other human rights lawyers who stand up to corporate polluters

"A human rights lawyer has been imprisoned in his own home for 100 days at the hands of the country's third largest corporation, and there has been very little attention to this chilling attack on his freedom," said Paul Paz y Miño of Amazon Watch.