Amazon Defenders

The Amazon Defenders Collective seeks to strengthen support for and protection of environmental and land defenders in the Brazilian Amazon. Funded by the Open Society Foundation, the two year project has three main phases: 1) strengthen the capacity of IZM and CPT, organisations in the Amazon that directly support frontline defenders, 2) provide support to defenders who face threats, 3) create long-term strategies for support.

Phase 1 focused on strengthening the operational capacity of the Zé Claudio and Maria Institute (IZM), and provided additional support to the Pastoral Land Commission (CPT) offices in Itaituba and Marabá in the systematisation of data on attacks against defenders in the region.

Phase 2 had three main components:

  1. Defender-Defender networks of support. At the 2019 Forest Defenders Conference, we brought together several Brazilian defenders who faced extensive and continued threats. After the conference, we worked with a group of the attendees to provide continued support. The Defender-Defender network created mechanisms to continue that support and expand it to reach more people.

  2. Training and support. In addition to continued work liaising with international emergency funding for at-risk defenders, this component included training in use of the app TELLA, a safer way for collecting data and evidence of attacks and threats. It also included training in international legal mechanisms and fund-raising strategies.

  3. Holistic care and therapies. Most emergency support to defenders does not adequately provide for holistic care and therapies to address the impacts of traumas, both emotional and physical. We are developing methods to provide holistic care to defenders who are forced to flee their homes. This holistic care work is directly linked to the Casa de Respiro, which arose from the Amazon Defenders Collective project.

    Phase 3. Keeping the collective alive. As the project wraps up, we are seeking mechanisms to maintain and expand the collective. This includes building upon the trainings carried out in Phase 2, which led to successful funding proposals including: a) support for the Casa de Respiro, b) research into the strengths and weaknesses of the Brazilian government's Protection Programme for Human Rights Defenders. We continue to seek novel ways to continue to build upon the successes of the group.