When Ecuadorians voted two years ago to block oil drilling in Yasuni National Park, it was a triumph for environmentalists seeking to protect one of the most biodiverse places on Earth. And it was in character for a country that was first to enshrine the “rights of nature” in its constitution and is home to parts of the Amazon rain forest and the Galápagos Islands.
But recent moves by President Daniel Noboa have alarmed environmentalists and Indigenous leaders who say the country’s green reputation — and its protections for civil society — are unraveling.
