Latin American countries have been historically decimated by foreign exploitation of their natural resources. Most recently, Free Trade Agreements negotiated throughout the region have allowed the US and other powers to invest heavily in extractive industries in Latin America, particularly in the rapidly-growing mining sector. The consequences for local communities and their natural environment have been disastrous and have contributed to human rights violations, displacement, destruction of ecosystems, and have exacerbated economic inequalities. But communities are resisting—organizing creatively and demanding protection of their social, political and environmental rights.

This Left Forum workshop will discuss the impacts of multinational investment in the region, how networks of activists are supporting community resistance to the exploitation of their lands and how you can get involved. Case studies from El Salvador, Guatemala and Colombia will be examined.

Moderator: Dana Brown, Executive Director of the US Office on Colombia.

Speakers:

• Manuel Pérez-Rocha, IPS Associate Fellow
• Kelsey Alford-Jones, Director of the Guatemala Human Rights Commission, and
• Paul Bocking, PhD student in human geography at York University.

Please register.