Extraction in the Era of Global Change: Latin America Pre-Conference 2026
Invite Only Event
Date: April 30th, 2026
Time: 8:30 AM - 4:00 PM EST
Location: Balsillie School of International Affairs
Morning Arrival & Opening
8:45 AM: Brief Introduction and Opening Remarks (15 minutes)
Legal Frameworks and Human Rights
Focus: International law, human rights, and accountability strategies.
● 9:00 AM: Andrew Thomson – UNDRIP and the 45th anniversary of the COBO report.
● 9:10 AM: Shin Imai – Promoting corporate accountability, mining law, and human rights.
● 9:20 AM: Nancy Tapias Torrado – Indigenous women-led mobilizations: Use and limitations of "free, prior and informed consent – FPIC."
● 9:30 AM: Grahame Russell – Hudbay Minerals lawsuits in Guatemala.
● 9:40 AM: Panel Discussion (20 minutes).
Resource Extraction in Latin American Communities
Focus: In-depth look at extraction in Latin American contexts and local community impacts.
● 10:10 AM: Aldo Orellana López – From coal to copper, the impacts of mining in South America
● 10:20 AM: Alfonso Morales – Indigenous communities in Ecuador.
● 10:30 AM: Paulina Personius – Impact of mining waste on nearby communities.
● 10:40 AM: Jorge Camacho – Cases of human rights violations in the extraction industry.
● 10:50 AM: Panel Discussion (20 minutes)
BREAK
Indigenous Perspectives: Land, Community and Stewardship
Focus: Physical and social impacts of extraction on Indigenous health and well-being.
● 11:25 AM: Dorothy Flood-Larkman – Respecting Indigenous land rights and allyship.
● 11:35 AM: Helena Blanco – Indigenous territorial and women’s rights; autodetermination.
● 11:45 AM: John Lewis – Traditional forest management practices by Indigenous
communities.
● 11:55 PM: Panel Discussion (20 to 30 minutes)
Lunch
Critical Minerals, Safety, and Sustainable Practices
Focus: Green technology, critical minerals dependence, and mitigation techniques.
● 1:10 PM: Alberto Fonseca – Beyond trade-offs: the benefits of impact assessment (when done right) to the mining industry.
● 1:20 PM: Andres Recalde – Corporate Approaches for Project Social Acceptability
● 1:30 PM: Ruby Patterson – When a Mineral Becomes “Critical”: Safety, Health, and Risk in Frontier Extraction
● 1:40 PM: Craig Johnson – Lithium politics in South America.
● 1:50 PM: Panel Discussion (20 minutes)
Health Impacts of Extraction on Indigenous Peoples
Focus: Strategies for land defense, food sovereignty, and territory protection.
● 2:10 PM: Melody Morton Ninomiya – Mental health impacts of land dispossession.
● 2:20 PM: Esther Yazzie-Lewis – Health impacts of uranium mining on Navajon communities.
● 2:30 PM: Ketan Shankardass – Giant Mine extraction legacy and remediation.
● 2:40 PM: Panel Discussion (20 minutes)
Closing Remarks & Networking Reception
3:25 PM: Networking reception with light refreshments.
Balsillie School of International Affairs
Interconnected Futures Conference!
Join us May 1-3, 2026 for Interconnected Futures: Pathways to Justice in Global Health, Peace and Sustainability, hosted by Pegasus Institute

