2015’s Deadly Environment: The Killing and Criminalization of Land and Environmental Defenders Worldwide

2015 was the worst year on record for killings of land and environmental defenders - people struggling to protect their land, forests and rivers through peaceful actions, against mounting odds. The environment is emerging as a new battleground for human rights. As demand for products like timber, minerals and palm oil continues, governments, companies and criminal gangs are exploiting land with little regard for the people who live on it. Increasingly, communities that take a stand are finding themselves in the firing line of companies? private security, state forces and a thriving market for contract killers