Business and Human Rights – The Environment
About the Environment and Human Rights....
Amnesty International USA works on issues related to the environment and human rights as part of their Business & Human Rights Program. Defending human rights and protecting the environment is a universal responsibility. But protecting the environment and a community's way of life can also be a dangerous undertaking, as the tragic deaths of Brazilian Chico Mendes and Nigerian Ken Saro-Wiwa demonstrate--both were murdered for their activism. One of the goals of Amnesty's Corporate Action Network (CAN) is to defend the rights of environmental activists and address pervasive patterns of human rights abuses that occur in the wake of environmental degradation.
 Chico Mendes, Brazilian land activist. Murdered in 1988 by timber and logging interests. |  Ken Saro-Wiwa, Nigerian environmentalist, human rights activist, and writer. Executed in 1995 by the Nigerian government for organizing his fellow citizens against the oil industry. |
The Corporate Action Network represents a tremendous opportunity to generate grassroots activism on cutting edge human rights issues of our time and to work with powerful coalition partners. It offers a unique opportunity to address the root causes of human rights violations, to hold multinational corporations accountable for protecting and promoting human rights, and energize activists to action on behalf of those who give the earth a voice.
Contact the Business and Human Rights Program Office at 212-633-4288 or email corpaction@aiusa.org for more information.
