Leonardo DiCaprio Instagram – Congratulations to local communities in Ecuador’s Intag Valley, who have won a huge victory in the Imbabura Provincial Court that will protect their livelihoods, sources of freshwater, and threatened wildlife. The court recently ruled that the Llurimagua large-scale copper mining project violated local communities’ constitutional right to consultation and the rights of nature, which are enshrined in Ecuador’s constitution. The license for the mining project was revoked and all work on the project must stop. Local communities in Intag have been resisting mining projects in the cloud forests where they live for nearly 30 years, and their latest hard-fought victory has global implications. Intag Valley is in the Tropical Andes, one of the most biodiverse places on the planet, harboring more species than even the Amazon. Intag Valley also makes up part of the Intag-Toisan Key Biodiversity Area, a place that scientists have identified as critical for the persistence of biodiversity on Earth. By winning this court case, local communities in Intag Valley have helped protect an irreplaceable slice of the wild. If we are going to prevent the most catastrophic effects of climate change and biodiversity loss, we need to protect the species and cloud forests in the Tropical Andes, like Intag Valley. Special thanks and congratulations to everyone working to protect Intag Valley and support local communities there, including: @cedenma.ec @centrojambatu @amphibiansurvivalalliance Alianza por los Derechos Humanos Ecuador Defensa y Conservacion de Intag (DECOIN) Atelopus Survival Initiative @rewild #SalvemosIntag