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More than 60 scientific, social, and environmental organizations publicly denounced the advance of a legal and media intimidation strategy aimed at hindering and punishing environmental defenders in the country. The signatory organizations demanded that the Public Prosecutor's Office and the Judiciary dismiss the lawsuits filed by Ocean Pacific Financial, the company promoting the Puerto Barú port project in David, against the organizations Adopta Bosque Panamá and […]

Words often promise more than reality delivers. Greenwashing, as it's called, isn't just about advertising campaigns, but also about political and communication strategies that manipulate environmental language to legitimize extractivism. In this way, so-called "eco-ports" promise "sustainable tourism" and "blue progress," but, unfortunately, behind the green rhetoric lies […]

At a crowded press conference held in Panama City, more than 60 scientific, social, and environmental organizations publicly denounced the advance of a legal and media intimidation strategy aimed at hindering and punishing environmental defenders in the country. The signatory organizations demanded that the Public Prosecutor's Office and the Judiciary […]

Terrorizing, exhausting, and silencing environmental defenders: this is how SLAPP lawsuits operate—strategic trials against public participation that are growing worldwide as a tool of legal intimidation. Behind rhetoric of “progress” or “sustainable development,” corporations use the judicial system to silence criticism and wear down communities. […]

While the sea appears calm off the coast of Chiriquí, beneath its surface, changes are brewing that we cannot ignore. The Puerto Barú port project in Chiriquí aims to open a navigation channel through the David Mangroves protected area—a species protected by Law 304 of 2022.

In 2022, Panama took a historic step for the planet: it passed the Law of the Rights of Nature, recognizing that ecosystems have the legal right to exist, persist, and regenerate. Recognizing that nature has rights means understanding that life is not an exclusive privilege of human beings. Rivers, forests, oceans, and the species that inhabit them also have the right to exist, regenerate, and complete their life cycles without being destroyed.

When Rights Are Not Enough: The world is going through an era of contradictions. States that sign climate treaties and enact environmental protection laws are often the same ones that allow megaprojects that destroy the ecosystems they swear to defend. In Panama, a pioneering country in recognizing the Rights of Nature, this paradox is embodied in […]

According to Law 41 of 1998, protected areas in Panama are terrestrial, coastal, or marine zones officially declared to conserve natural and cultural resources, as well as to promote education, recreation, and environmental research. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) also defines these zones as spaces […]

If there is one thing Gustavo doesn't believe in, it is pregnant birds. And if there's one thing he doesn't believe in, it's not mincing words. At 34 years old, born, raised and weathered by the sea in Boca Chica, this fisherman and tour operator has seen enough to know that, despite the promises of development and [...]

Campaigning to get Puerto Barú in David relocated, to minimise environmental damage to mangroves, marine species, and other wildlife.

The Chiriquí region in Panama is in need of economic development. One way of creating jobs, increasing trade and connectivity is to develop a port in the region.

The Puerto Barú project in David is intended to be built 20 kilometres from the city of David, in an area surrounded by 25% of Panama's remaining mangroves, which are home to critically endangered species such as the hawksbill turtle and the Central American black monkey. The plaintiffs aim to prove before the [...]