15 Years of Rights of Nature in Ecuador
Join the Global Alliance for the Rights of Nature (GARN) in Ecuador next March to celebrate 15 years of Rights of Nature in action. Discover the groundbreaking concept of the Rights of Nature, a movement that recognizes the inherent rights of ecosystems to thrive and flourish.
Safety Measures
GARN takes the safety of our delegation very seriously. For that reason we have taken measures and adapted our itinerary to avoid provinces that were considered less safe to travel to due to the situation in Ecuador, and now we will only visit two cases and will be able to listen and spend time with indigenous delegates, especially Amazonians from the Cofan and Sarayaku territory, lawyers and leaders of the Rights of Nature movement in Ecuador who will accompany the delegation in Quito.It should be taken into consideration that this changed the itinerary a little and therefore the plan was modified. The trip will be from 6-14, two cases will be visited and the cost will be lower.
The Delegation will meet with local allies, Indigenous leaders, community members, lawyers, and organizations who have brought forward and won cases on behalf of the Rights of Nature. Through interactive discussions, workshops, and community engagements, you will have the chance to see Rights of Nature in action and witness the power it has to protect critical ecosystems and the Indigenous Peoples and larger communities who depend on them.
The Listening & Learning Delegation will be guided by Natalia Greene, Global Director of GARN, International Rights of Nature Tribunal Secretariat and active participant for the recognition of the Rights of Nature in the Ecuadorian Constitution.
Where you’ll go. Who you will meet.
March 6th
Arrival to Quito, Ecuador
March 7th – 8th
Los Cedros Reserve
The delegation will spend two days in Los Cedros, a cloud forest where mining was prohibited in 2021 when the Constitutional Court ruled in favor of Rights of Nature. Guided by experts, you will have the opportunity to observe unique wildlife, explore pristine landscapes, and deepen your understanding of the delicate balance required for the well-being of both humans and nature. After lunch at Los Cedros, the Delegation will travel to the Choco Andino.
March 9th – 10th
Visit to the Chocó Andino
The delegation will visit the Chocó Andino, a megadiverse territory, where the last healthy forests and rivers of the capital city of Ecuador “Quito” are located. The Chocó Andino Biosphere Reserve is an area of more than 287,000 hectares that includes forests, moorlands and fragile ecosystems. Last August 20th, 2023, the Collective Quito Sin Minería, that the group will meet during the visit won the popular referendum with 69% of the population of Quito who voted in favor of banning metal mining at every scale in the Chocó Andino in order to preserve these forests.
March 11th
Visit Alambi River
Within the Chocó Andino Reserve is the Alambi River, which, as an initiative of the inhabitants to protect one of the most important rivers in the Andean Chocó, won a Rights of Nature case against a hydroelectric project that intended to reduce 90% of the river’s course. The Alambi River case is one of the most important river rights cases in the country.
Return to Quito – Night at Hosteria San José de Puembo.
March 12th- March 13th
Workshop at San José de Puembo, Quito
The group will have the opportunity to share with a delegation of Indigenous and Community leaders, lawyers and activists who have led successful Rights of Nature cases in Ecuador in a two-day workshop in the beautiful premises of the Hosteria San Jose de Puembo. This will allow the group to learn and understand first hand these cases and have a deep dive with our allies.
March 14th
Delegation return
We are excited to invite you on this delegation to not only see Ecuador’s breathtaking biodiversity but to meet and learn from those who have been living in harmony with nature for centuries and are using Rights of Nature to win critical protections for their lands and communities.
In Country Transportation
Food
Lodging
Expert Rights of Nature Trip leader
Translator
Admissions and fees
Additional
Recommendations
* This trip is not confirmed until the minimum group size is met. Please do not purchase airfare until you receive confirmation from GARN that the trip has been confirmed.
* The first and last days of the tour are dedicated primarily to arrivals and departures – please schedule your arriving and departing flights on these days. If you prefer to arrive before or depart after the listed tour dates, we can still arrange airport transportation but keep in mind there will be an extra charge, as drivers are hired per day.
Expert: Joseph de Croux
Director de la Reserva del Bosque Protector Los Cedros
In November, 2021, the Constitutional Court of Ecuador used the constitutional “Rights of Nature” provision to safeguard Los Cedros Protected Forest from mining concessions. In the casem the Autonomous Decentralized Municipal Government of Cotacachi filed an action for injunctive relief against the Minister of Environment and the Ecuadorian state mining company ENAMI EP. The court ruled that the Rights of Nature, the right to a healthy environment, to water, and the right to an environmental consultation were violated. The court also ruled any extractive activities should not be carried out within the Los Cedros Protected Forest ecosystem. The Los Cedros ecosystem is one of the most biodiverse areas on the planet, home to endangered frogs, spectacled bears, brown-headed spider monkeys, and dozens of rare orchid species.
Expert: Inty Arcos
Ecuador is one of the 17 megadiverse countries in the world. On July 25, 2018, the Andean Chocó joined the World Network of Biosphere Reserves. In 2018, the Andean Chocó was one of 24 areas declared under this category that year and the only one in Latin America. Being part of the Biosphere Reserve gives this territory additional tools for biodiversity conservation, but also at the local level in terms of sustainable development of its inhabitants. Chocó Andino is an area of 286,000 hectares located northwest of the province of Pichincha, just 45 minutes from Quito, and extends over nine parishes within three municipal areas. The biosphere reserve contains nine protected forests, three Conservation and Sustainable Use Areas (ACUS), multiple private reserves, and a national park: the Pululahua Geobotanical Reserve. More than 73,000 hectares of the Chocó Andino correspond to eight core areas: places where the forests have better conservation status and are important for their biodiversity and the environmental services they provide. In 2022, the Quito Without Mining Collective obtained the approval of the Constitutional Court to gather 199,000 signatures (5% of the electoral roll) of the Quiteños for the National Electoral Council (CNE) to call a popular consultation and vote to ban or prohibit full-scale mining in the Andean Chocó. The Collective gathered more than 455,000 signatures. After an important campaign, all Quiteños and Quiteñas had to go to the polls. On August 20, 2023, 69% of the population of Quito decided to ban metallic mining in the Metropolitan District of Quito, artisanal, small, medium, and large scale. This historic result is also the result of a population that 15 years ago internalized that Nature is a subject of rights.
