Liz Chiclla

Peruvian environmental lawyer protecting Amazon biodiversity through indigenous rights advocacy

Liz Chiclla is a Quechua lawyer and environmental advocate leading efforts to protect the Peruvian Amazon through legal strategies that empower indigenous communities. Born in 1990 in the Amazonas region, her work began as a legal advisor for Asociación Interétnica de Desarrollo de la Selva Peruana (AIDESEP), Peru's largest indigenous rights organization. Chiclla pioneered the use of ancestral land rights laws to block illegal logging and mining projects threatening indigenous territories.

Her landmark 2018 legal victory in the Corte Superior de Justicia de Loreto halted a Chinese-backed oil project in the Kugapakori Reserve, setting a precedent for enforcing UNDRIP standards in Peruvian courts. Chiclla's approach integrates traditional ecological knowledge with modern environmental law, resulting in over 20 successful legal actions since 2015.

As founder of Defiende la Amazonia, she trains indigenous leaders in legal advocacy and coordinates transnational campaigns against extractive industries. Her work has been recognized by the 2020 Goldman Environmental Prize and the 2022 UN Indigenous Leadership Award. Chiclla currently advises the Peruvian government on implementing the Amazon Sacred Headwaters Initiative, a regional conservation pact covering 600,000 km² of rainforest.