eunice_mejia

Peruvian environmental leader fighting mining pollution through legal battles and community organizing

Eunice Mejía is a Peruvian lawyer and environmental activist whose relentless advocacy has exposed the devastating impacts of large-scale mining on indigenous communities. Born in Cajamarca in 1975, she witnessed the contamination caused by Yanacocha mine - Latin America's largest gold mine - which poisoned water sources and displaced families. She earned her law degree from the National University of San Marcos in 1999, later specializing in environmental law.

In 2004, Mejía co-founded Dejusticia, an organization that uses legal strategies to protect Amazonian communities from extractive industries. She successfully sued the Yanacocha consortium in 2012 for water contamination, securing historic reparations for affected families - the first such ruling in Peru. Her work also focuses on defending the rights of the Awajún and Wampis indigenous peoples facing mining encroachment.

Mejía's book 《Justicia Ambiental en la Amazonía》 (2018) documents legal strategies for environmental justice. She's a key figure in the Amazon Watch network, collaborating with international NGOs to halt destructive projects like the Conga mine expansion. Her TEDx talk "When Rivers Die, Communities Die" highlights the interconnectedness of environmental health and human survival.

Despite receiving multiple death threats, Mejía continues her legal battles from her base in Lima. She mentors young activists and trains community leaders in legal advocacy, creating a new generation of environmental defenders. Her work exemplifies how law can be a powerful tool for social justice in resource-rich but environmentally vulnerable regions.