HISTORIC VOTE PASSES TO PROTECT THE AMAZON

On August 20, Ecuadorians voted to ban oil drilling in Yasuní, an area known as the ‘heart of the Amazon’ and one of the most biodiverse regions on the planet. More than 58% voted in favour and 41% against, to keep 726 million barrels of oil underground in the Yasuní national park. This historic vote will protect two of the world’s last “uncontacted” Indigenous communities living in voluntary isolation from the dangers of oil extraction.