September 30, 2025
By Claire Biason,
Coalitions & Engagement Program Manager
Date: Thursday, 9 October 2025
Time: 08:00–09:30 Colombia | 10:00–11:30 Brazil | 15:00–16:30 Central Europe | 20:00–21:30 Indonesia
Format: Online webinar (90 minutes) with simultaneous interpretation (EN/ES/PT/FR/BH)
The surge in demand for lithium, cobalt, copper, and nickel is reshaping the global landscape of mining. Yet much of this expansion is taking place in Indigenous territories and biodiversity hotspots, as governments weaken safeguards and roll back protections.
While the risks are urgent, there are also powerful efforts and opportunities to influence the outcome of this ongoing situation. Policy experts, civil society actors, and frontline voices from mineral-rich regions will share perspectives on how to strengthen safeguards, enforce Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC), and advance proposals such as permanent no-go zones for mining in areas of high ecological and cultural value.
In this 90-minute GroundWork session, we will:
Meet the panellists
Yblin Román Escobar, Policy Lead, SIRGE Coalition
Yblin (Kolla Quechua) advocates for the recognition and protection of Indigenous Peoples’ rights in EU and international policy, with a focus on energy transition mining. She also lectures on sustainability and researches social life cycle impacts at Ghent University.
Emily Iona Stewart, Head of Policy and EU Relations, Transition Minerals, Global Witness
Emily works to ensure that the shift to clean energy does not come at the cost of human rights and biodiversity. She works to embed justice and accountability in mineral supply chains and manages political engagement in the EU and beyond.
Ana Carolina González Espinosa, Senior Director for Programs, Natural Resource Governance Institute (NRGI)
Ana Carolina leads on just energy transitions, gender-just approaches, and equitable fossil fuel phaseout. With over 20 years of experience in governance and climate policy, she has also worked at the Ford Foundation and holds a Ph.D. in political science from Sciences Po, Paris.
André Castro Santos, Technical Director, LACLIMA
André works at the intersection of law, climate, and biodiversity. A lawyer and geographer, he holds PhDs in Environmental Law (University of São Paulo) and Social Sciences (University of Lisbon), with expertise in environmental governance and Indigenous rights.
Moderator: Paula Alvarado, Founder, Seeds for Change and GroundWork Co-Lead – Moderator
Paula bridges climate, biodiversity, Indigenous rights, human rights, and global health agendas to build stronger impact and collaboration worldwide.
GroundWork is a collective initiative by the International Climate Politics Hub (ICPH), Seeds for Change, and TINTA, with the support of the Climate and Land Use Alliance (CLUA). Since 2023, GroundWork briefings have provided Indigenous Peoples and local communities with accessible tools to navigate and influence international climate policy.
From its launch onward, the series has reached hundreds of participants across different regions, with content developed in close partnership with grassroots networks. In 2025, GroundWork is evolving to include deeper engagement with regional organisers, Indigenous youth, and technical advisors working across territories and languages.
