In 2020, Argentina ratified the Escazú Agreement. The document links environmental rights to human rights, recognizing that future people have the right to live in a healthy environment. Then, in October 2023, the government presented a national plan of action for the agreement.

Despite these strides towards a cleaner environment, Argentina is going backwards. Milei’s government eliminated the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development, and there hasn’t been any implementation of the Escazú Agreement.

Environmental defenders are not only tired of setbacks going into this year’s Earth Day, but also recognizing the effects of their position. 

“According to a 2022 Global Witness report, Latin America and the Caribbean is the most dangerous region to be an environmental defender, accounting for 88% of murders of environmental defenders worldwide… In Columbia, killings nearly doubled from 22 in 2021 to 60 in 2022,” Cristian Fernández, the Legal Coordinator at FARN, reports.