CGIAR 
Building Ecosystem and Social Resilience as a strategy for environmental crime prevention? A critical panel discussion on the Amazon
This side event explores the growing threat of environmental crime, a multi-billion-dollar illicit economy that has deepened the environmental and social crises in the Amazon region. Environmental crimes, such as illegal logging and mining, are facilitated by transboundary criminal organizations, weak governance, and the complicity of political and economic elites. These crimes not only degrade ecosystems but also endanger the lives of Indigenous communities and environmental defenders, who are often subjected to violence and human rights abuses when resisting illegal activities.
The event will examine how climate change exacerbates these issues, intensifying the disruption of ecosystems through droughts, fires, and extreme weather events that destabilize food security and local economies, further driving environmental crime. The event will critically assess the viability of adopting resilience-based strategies, such as agroecology, to address the entrenched challenges posed by environmental crime. It will explore the potential for these strategies to complement public security and criminal justice initiatives in tackling underlying drivers of crime, such as inequality, marginalization, and corruption. However, significant obstacles remain, including opposition from agribusiness and the influence of criminal organizations on local governments. The discussion will focus on whether building social-ecological resilience can be an effective and sustainable response to environmental crime in the Amazon.
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