Bertha Zúñiga Cáceres

Honduran environmental activist leading indigenous rights and anti-corporate campaigns after her mother's assassination

Bertha Zúñiga Cáceres, born in 1990, is a Honduran environmental and indigenous rights activist who rose to prominence following the 2016 assassination of her mother, renowned activist Berta Cáceres. As the current general coordinator of the Civic Council of Popular and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras (COPINH), Bertha has amplified her mother’s legacy by fighting against hydroelectric dam projects threatening the Gualcarque River, sacred to the Lenca people.

Her work exemplifies intersectional activism, blending environmentalism with anti-patriarchal and anti-colonial struggles. Despite facing ongoing death threats, she successfully pressured the World Bank to divest from the Agua Zarca Dam project in 2017. Bertha’s leadership redefines grassroots mobilization in Central America, emphasizing youth and women’s roles in resisting extractive industries.

In 2022, she spearheaded legal actions against David Castillo, one of her mother’s killers, achieving a historic conviction. Through international speaking tours and digital campaigns, Bertha has turned COPINH into a global symbol of indigenous sovereignty, inspiring climate justice movements worldwide.