Robin Broad
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Articles by Robin Broad
The Water Defenders
“Broad and Cavanagh . . . expose in granular detail and with great compassion the deadly, dangerous, and daunting legal and legislative juggernaut faced by those forced to defend and protect their most precious natural resource from the fallout of industrial greed and corruption.” —Booklist “A fast-paced account of environmental justice and determination in the face of challenging odds.” —Library Journal “Broad and Cavanagh are masterful storytellers.
[OPINION] The far-flung legacy of Carlos Padilla: When a governor clinched a vote that saved a country
'Governor Padilla’s testimony...was crucial in the final push leading to the historic March 2017 vote that made El Salvador the first nation on earth to ban metals mining to save its waterways' On Friday, May 5, the Philippines lost a great governor, a man who stood as a hero not only to his constituents, but also to people on the other side of the globe, including us.
El Salvador: the Water Defenders
The Water Defenders: How Ordinary People Saved a Country from Corporate Greed By Robin Broad and John Cavanagh, Beacon Press, March 2022 Reviewed for LAB by Malcolm Boorer In March 2009 while I was in El Salvador as part of an election observer team, I had the chance to visit Cabañas and learn about how gold mining was being opposed by ADES (the Association of Economic and Social Development).
Book recounts successful campaign to ban metal mining in El Salvador
The Water Defenders: How Ordinary People Saved a Country from Corporate Greed By Robin Broad and John Cavanagh 224 pages; Beacon Press $27.95 In 2009, a grassroots group working to stop a Canadian company from opening a gold mine in central El Salvador was chosen to receive a human rights award in Washington, D.C. A few months before its leaders were to travel to the United States, however, one of them — Marcelo Rivera — vanished.
The Water Defenders
The Lempa River reservoir in El Salvador In late June 2009, the two of us received deeply disturbing news: Marcelo Rivera had been disappeared. We had never met Marcelo, but we had been looking forward to doing so. He and four other “water defenders,” as they would become known to many, were scheduled to travel to our city, Washington, DC, to receive a human rights award. At that point, we had never been to Marcelo’s home country, much less to his hometown or the old house he was renovating.
Water Is Life. Can We Protect It?
The Lempa River, whose watershed provides water for half of El Salvador. , Shutterstock From West Texas to Jackson, Mississippi, tens of millions of people struggled through late winter storms that froze pipes, broke water mains, and cut off electricity. They froze without showers, toilets, or washing machines — let alone drinking water — for days or even weeks.
Water is life. Can we protect it? (Americans can learn a lot from El Salvador)
From West Texas to Jackson, Mississippi, tens of millions of people struggled through late winter storms that froze pipes, broke water mains, and cut off electricity. They froze without showers, toilets, or washing machines — let alone drinking water — for days or even weeks.
Water is life: Can we protect it?
By Robin Broad, originally published by Foreign Policy In Focus March 25, 2021 Americans will have to fight hard to protect their water from corporate greed. They can learn a lot from El Salvador. Originally published in OtherWords. From West Texas to Jackson, Mississippi, tens of millions of people struggled through late winter storms that froze pipes, broke water mains, and cut off electricity.
What Salvadoran Activists Can Teach Us About Building Coalitions
This article appears in the April 5/12, 2021 issue. In March 2017, people from poorer communities across El Salvador stood up to corporate power and convinced their legislature to make their country the first in the world to ban mining to save its precious rivers. Their battle cries: “Water, not gold” and “Water for life.” In the process of their 13-year fight, these water defenders organized a national coalition that came to be known as La Mesa.
Water is Life, Can We Protect It?
Wahclella Falls, Columbia Gorge. Photo: Jeffrey St. Clair. From West Texas to Jackson, Mississippi, tens of millions of people struggled through late winter storms that froze pipes, broke water mains, and cut off electricity. They froze without showers, toilets, or washing machines — let alone drinking water — for days or even weeks. The irony that Texas, the state built on fossil fuels, was completely unprepared for extreme weather disasters shouldn’t be lost on anyone.
Water is life. Can we protect it?
From West Texas to Jackson, Mississippi, tens of millions of people struggled through late winter storms that froze pipes, broke water mains, and cut off electricity. They froze without showers, toilets, or washing machines — let alone drinking water — for days or even weeks. The irony that Texas, the state built on fossil fuels, was completely unprepared for extreme weather disasters shouldn’t be lost on anyone. Fossil fuel and utility firms have long plied state officials with money.
Water is Life. Can We Protect It?
From West Texas to Jackson, Mississippi, tens of millions of people struggled through late winter storms that froze pipes, broke water mains, and cut off electricity. They froze without showers, toilets, or washing machines — let alone drinking water — for days or even weeks. The irony that Texas, the state built on fossil fuels, was completely unprepared for extreme weather disasters shouldn’t be lost on anyone. Fossil fuel and utility firms have long plied state officials with money.
Can We Protect the Very Thing That Sustains Life?
From West Texas to Jackson, Mississippi, tens of millions of people struggled through late winter storms that froze pipes, broke water mains, and cut off electricity. They froze without showers, toilets, or washing machines—let alone drinking water—for days or even weeks. The irony that Texas, the state built on fossil fuels, was completely unprepared for extreme weather disasters shouldn't be lost on anyone.
Water Is Life. Can We Protect It?
From West Texas to Jackson, Mississippi, tens of millions of people struggled through late winter storms that froze pipes, broke water mains, and cut off electricity. They froze without showers, toilets, or washing machines — let alone drinking water — for days or even weeks. The irony that Texas, the state built on fossil fuels, was completely unprepared for extreme weather disasters shouldn’t be lost on anyone. Fossil fuel and utility firms have long plied state officials with money.
The Water Defenders
Winner of the 2021 Duke University Juan Mendez Award Named one of The Progressive’s “Favorite Books of 2021” and one of the “Best of Books 2021” by Foreign Affairs The David and Goliath story of ordinary people in El Salvador who rallied together with international allies to prevent a global mining corporation from poisoning the country’s main water source At a time when countless communities are resisting powerful corporations—from Flint, Michigan, to the Standing Rock Reservation, to...
The Water Defenders: How Ordinary People Saved a Country From Corporate Greed
Sign in and save to read later Save to Pocket Print this article Share on Twitter Share on Facebook Get a link By Robin Broad and John Cavanagh In This Review In This Review The Water Defenders: How Ordinary People Saved a Country From Corporate Greed By Robin Broad and John Cavanagh Purchase In this gripping page-turner, Broad and Cavanagh narrate the uplifting story of how a global coalition of environmental activists, labor unions, and religious leaders blocked a Canadian firm from opening...
Like Water for Gold in El Salvador
Activists are risking their lives in the fight against US and Canadian mining companies. By Robin Broad and John Cavanagh July 11, 2011 fb tw mail Print msg wa sms Bookmark Ready to fight back? Sign up for Take Action Now and get three actions in your inbox every week. You will receive occasional promotional offers for programs that support The Nation’s journalism. You can read our Privacy Policy here. Thank you for signing up. For more from The Nation, check out our latest issue.
Taking the Leap: From Ecotourism to Community Toursim by John Cavanagh, Robin Broad
In an increasingly vulnerable world, we're searching for rooted communities—and what we can learn from them. Read more at our blog, Finding Rootedness. In the heart of Trinidad’s ancient forests, we discover a concept that extends ecotourism in a direction that excites us. “We like to call it community tourism, by which we mean the tourist actually lives in the community and interacts with the people and their surrounding environment,” explains local resident Kelly Warren.
Time for Duterte to shut down OceanaGold
Ten violations that should prompt its removal Largely out of sight in the rugged mountains of Nueva Vizcaya, Australian-Canadian company OceanaGold has been making millions mining gold and copper, while local people and the environment suffer. The company has repeatedly violated President Duterte’s calls for responsible mining. OceanaGold has not adhered to its commitments under its mining permit and various Philippine laws and regulations.
[ANALYSIS] Time for Duterte to shut down this mining company
Largely out of sight in the rugged mountains of Nueva Vizcaya, Australian-Canadian company OceanaGold has been making millions mining gold and copper, while local people and the environment suffer. The company has repeatedly violated President Duterte’s calls for responsible mining. OceanaGold has not adhered to its commitments under its mining permit and various Philippine laws and regulations. It is time to heed local calls to shut down this company’s operations.
[OPINION] Duterte's new warning to mining companies
This year is a key time to act on OceanaGold’s reforestation scam and the other problems from mining, given that its current 25-year mining agreement expires in 2019 On April 9, President Duterte issued a warning to mining companies in a speech in Davao City: "I do not want to see bald mountains in the areas you have mined. I want to see trees as tall as me in 6 months. If I don't see any in the area you destroyed, consider your permit revoked." These are bold and important words.
Black Wealth in America Hardly Exists - Inequality.org
Wealthy NBA, NFL, and rap stars get plenty of attention. But, overall, the actual wealth of African Americans barely registers, hidden behind a decadent veil of black celebrity. By Antonio Moore I don’t care if Odell Beckham Jr. scores another NFL touchdown this year while wearing the rapper Drake’s OVO cleats. I don’t care if Stephen Curry gets along with Kevin Durant this NBA season. And I really don’t care what Lebron James thinks about Hillary Clinton and the election.
[OPINION] Can victory over irresponsible mining in Central America spur a win in the PH?
OceanaGold has been stunningly defeated in El Salvador, at least for the time being. The months to come will determine whether it can be defeated in the Philippines by 2019. In March 2017, the small nation of El Salvador took a huge step towards protecting its environment for present and future generations when its legislature passed a law outlawing all metals mining. It was a momentous vote – a vote heard round the world.
How An International Grassroots Campaign Beat Metal Mining Corporations
Uncategorized Analysis/Commentaries How An International Grassroots Campaign Beat Metal Mining Corporations Against overwhelming odds, El Salvador won its long battle for water. (Photo: Flickr/ Mobilus In Mobili) The cry of “water is life” has spread from farmers in El Salvador, over a decade ago, to families in Flint, Michigan, to the Standing Rock Sioux in North Dakota, and now to lawmakers in El Salvador.
El Salvador Votes for Water over Gold
The cry of “water is life” has spread from farmers in El Salvador, over a decade ago, to families in Flint, Michigan, to the Standing Rock Sioux in North Dakota, and now to lawmakers in El Salvador.
A wake-up call for Trump's trade agenda
This week, labor, environmental, religious and other groups, representing over 180 million people from around the world, sent a letter to a corporate mining CEO — a letter that is also a wake-up call for President Trump's trade agenda. The letter highlights the problems with the so-called "investor-state" provision in trade deals, first created through the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) 23 years ago.
El Salvador Lessons for the TPP Fight
The executives of a global mining corporation assumed it would be easy to get their way in Cabañas, a rural region of northern El Salvador. They were wrong. What they wanted was to extract the rich veins of gold buried near the Lempa River, the water source for more than half of El Salvador's 6.2 million people. Instead, local farmers and others came together to fight the project over concerns that the toxic chemicals used in gold mining would poison their water.
Victory for El Salvador Serves as Encouragement for TPP Fight
(Photo: SumofUS/Flickr) The executives of a global mining corporation assumed it would be easy to get their way in Cabañas, a rural region of northern El Salvador. They were wrong. What they wanted was to extract the rich veins of gold buried near the Lempa River, the water source for more than half of El Salvador’s 6.2 million people. Instead, local farmers and others came together to fight the project over concerns that the toxic chemicals used in gold mining would poison their water.
El Salvador Lessons for the TPP Fight
In a tale of people power over corporate power, a tribunal has ruled against a global company in a case over mining rights. Now we need to block trade deals that allow these “investor-state” lawsuits. The executives of a global mining corporation assumed it would be easy to get their way in Cabañas, a rural region of northern El Salvador. They were wrong.
El Salvador Ruling Offers a Reminder of Why the TPP Must Be Defeated
This large citizen mobilization against mining, supported by international allies, has convinced three successive Salvadoran presidents not to issue mining permits. This, despite hundreds of thousands of dollars spent by an OceanaGold “social responsibility” foundation providing handouts (folklore and sewing classes, Christmas dinners, and the like) to win hearts and minds in favor of the mine.7 LIKE THIS?
The Global Fight Against Corporate Rule
Over the past several decades, multinational corporate Goliaths have helped to write and rewrite hundreds of rules skewing tax, trade, investment and other policies in their favor. The extraordinary damage these policies have caused has become increasingly apparent to the communities and governments most directly affected by them. This, in turn, has strengthened the potential of a movement that’s emerging to try to reverse the momentum.
Tom Harkin and this year's Nobel Peace Prize
On Dec. 10, anti-child labor crusader Kailash Satyarthi (with Malala Yousafzai) will step onto a storied stage in Norway to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, while here in the United States, Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) winds down 40 years in the Congress and Senate. Together and individually, these two men — from opposite ends of the earth — have helped immeasurably to combat the worst forms of child labor.
Kailash Satyarthi’s Heroism | The Nation
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