A Conversation With Gina Chacon About Prohibiting New Mining Within Mexico’s Natural Protected Areas
Four years ago, Gina Chacon, our Mexico Program Policy Coordinator, embarked on a campaign to save Natural Protected Areas in Mexico from the looming threat of mining. From coordinating a multi-pronged coalition to serving as a subject matter expert in official meetings, Gina has been instrumental in promoting a bill proposed by the Federal Executive Branch that would ban new mines in Natural Protected Areas.
This week, her hard work paid off – the bill was approved! This is an incredible feat in Mexican conservation policy, one that came with determination, friendships, late nights, and lost loved ones.
Gina approaches conservation policy through the lens of gender equality and human rights, speaking up for women and defenders of the land who are often marginalized or even persecuted for their protection of Nature.
We are proud to work with incredible advocates like Gina who make real environmental change in the face of difficulty and unite communities in the process. Learn more about the reality of environmental work, Gina’s journey, and important progress in Mexican conservation policy below.
“I feel lucky to work with colleagues with whom a few days ago I shared messages with the same scream: ‘WE DID IT.’”
Protected forest inside the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve.
Why are you passionate about restoring, reconnecting, and rewilding North America?
My passion is motivated by the fact that ecosystems are vital to every living being that inhabits this beautiful world. Environmental degradation and biodiversity loss are major threats to plants and animals, some of which are critical to human food and medical systems. Restoration and conservation of natural ecosystems are therefore essential to these species’ survival and maintaining biodiversity.
Remnants of mines still exist in the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, an NPA in Angangueo, state of Michoacán, México.
I also love being part of a large movement committed to protecting the environment and human rights at Wildlands Network, in our partnerships, and in my community. I’m passionate about working with people to strengthen environmental policy and effectively protect our natural heritage.
What perspectives do you bring to your work at Wildlands Network?
I take an approach focused on gender equity and human rights. Women and girls are the most affected by environmental degradation and climate change worldwide. They often manage subsistence agriculture, so environmental changes directly impact their ability to feed their families.
I'm further motivated to defend human rights because, in my country, defending the environment can take your life. In 2022, at least 24 environmental defenders were killed. In the same year, 582 total aggressions were committed against environmentalists and communities, threatening their lives, personal integrity, property, and land.
Of all sectors, the mining sector had the highest number of aggressions against defenders of the land, according to CEMDA, one of the most widely recognized environmental organizations in Mexico.
“It motivates me to know that the work and perseverance of these years have borne fruit, especially in a dangerous context for environmental organizations and defenders.”
How do you incorporate this perspective into your work?
I work to make these gender inequities and human rights violations visible and help to protect those at risk. For example, I gather specific data concerning the role of women and children in environmentalism and educate decision-makers so they can make informed policies to guarantee their protection against the threats they face as defenders of the territory, particularly within Natural Protected Areas.
I also demand compliance with the State’s legal obligation to protect the environment through the right to a healthy environment stated in the Mexican constitution.
Why are natural protected areas so important to sustaining and restoring Nature in Mexico?
Mexico is a "megadiverse" country. It’s part of a select group of 17 nations with the greatest diversity of animals and plants. Natural Protected Areas are essential for the preservation and conservation of this biodiversity. They protect the most fragile ecosystems, safeguard the genetic diversity of wild species, and provide habitat for endangered species.
What is the legacy of mining in Mexico?
Enacted in 1992, the current Mining Law gave preference to mining over other land uses, ignoring the rights of indigenous peoples and disregarding effective environmental protection. Since then, the mining industry has left devastating impacts, including spills in the Bacanuchi and Sonora rivers in 2014, soil and water contamination, and land and natural resource dispossession.
What is the importance of the recent bill prohibiting new mining in Natural Protected Areas?
The recent bill approved by the Mexican Congress establishes several changes to the Mining Law, forbidding new mining within Natural Protected Areas, even as extensions of existing projects. It also amends the Environmental Protection Law to regulate waste management in these areas and prohibits underwater mining throughout the country.
When did you start to campaign for this bill?
In 2019, we started to organize diverse civil organizations and academics to provide information and analyses to decision-makers and the public. In 2020, Wildlands Network created a website to disseminate our collective efforts. In 2023, we joined forces with the coalition Cambiémosla Ya, which gathered 55,000 signatures to support the prohibition of mining in protected areas and to defend human rights threatened by the mining industry.
What was your role in the campaign?
In my role as co-leader of the campaign coalition, I established and led meetings to follow, draft, and share the coalition's agreements with all members. From 2018 to 2022, I analyzed and monitored different bills introduced in the Senate to forbid mining activities in protected areas. I shared my results with the coalition and stakeholders to demonstrate the gaps and measures that should be considered to effectively care for our protected areas.
I then attended government roundtables, university forums, and a meeting with the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in Mexico as a specialist to comment on initiatives presented, provide technical information, and inform decision-makers on the urgency of this issue.
What has the journey been like for you?
It has been years of intense, hopeful work, with ups and downs, progress and setbacks. The journey has been especially enriching because I’ve collaborated with great colleagues, academics, and advocates who share the same purpose. Together, we attend meetings with public officials, exchange messages late into the night, share ideas and dreams; and a few days ago we shared messages with the same scream: "WE DID IT."
This progress was possible thanks to the perseverance and determination of everyone involved from Mexico and beyond. In this path of learning and struggle, I especially recognize all those defenders who are in the territory, protecting the land and Nature with their own lives.
“When storms are strong, our people know that we will always collaborate to find new ways to grow.”
What does the future hold?
We're waiting for the president's signature and the publication of this new law, after which I’ll continue to monitor its correct implementation.
The world is the habitat of all living beings – humans have the enormous responsibility to stop our destruction. We will continue to hold the mining industries that destroy Nature accountable, while collaborating in the restoration, reconnecting, and rewilding of our Mother Earth.
