Extractive Industries, Tourism & Infrastructure (ETI)
Mining, fossil fuel extraction, mass tourism, and large-scale infrastructure projects are major drivers of forest degradation, deforestation, biodiversity loss, and rights violations, often imposed without the consent of affected communities. These projects, including those under the Belt and Road Initiative, exploit forest territories and push for false solutions such as mechanisms like the Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF).
Our campaign on Extractive Industries, Tourism and Infrastructure supports frontline communities in resisting harmful developments, amplifies their voices in global policy spaces, and advocates for rights-based and gender-just approaches. We push for an end to destructive mega-projects and promote truly sustainable pathways rooted in Indigenous knowledge, local stewardship, and gender and environmental justice.
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Across the world, forests and biodiversity are being destroyed by large-scale extractive projects, tourism developments, and sprawling infrastructure. Oil and gas drilling, open-pit mining, mass and luxury tourism complexes, and the expansion of airports, roads, and hotels are leaving deep scars on ecosystems and communities. The impacts, especially on women in all their diversity, are profound, unjust, and unacceptable.
The Global Forest Coalition launched the Extractive Industries, Tourism and Infrastructure (ETI) Campaign in 2018, following urgent calls from our member groups. Many had seen firsthand the harm caused by mining, mass tourism, and related infrastructure projects, particularly those financed under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Our campaign works to protect forests and uphold the rights of communities through targeted advocacy aimed at the decisionmakers behind these mega-projects.
Today, the ETI Campaign is more critical than ever. The climate crisis is fuelling new threats, from devastating forest fires to the financialisation of nature through biodiversity credits and markets. While phasing out fossil fuels and moving toward an energy transition are essential, these processes are too often linked to more mining, airstrip expansion, and infrastructure development, such as roads, buildings, and more, opening the door to more environmental harm.
We are working to ensure affected communities, especially women in all their diversity, can speak out and be heard on the issues of tourism, infrastructure, and extractive industries, as well as the gender injustices they involve. Together, we defend communities’ rights, protect their livelihoods, and safeguard the forests they call home.
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