Latin America’s history is deeply marked by human rights abuses linked to extractive industries, particularly by the mining and fossil fuel sectors, which have long benefited from asymmetric power dynamics between the private sector, governments, and communities. Against this backdrop the region stands centre stage in the global energy transition: South America in particular holds vast reserves of lithium, copper, silver and other minerals which, while mostly used for other industries, are essential in the manufacturing of batteries, solar and wind technologies, hydroelectric projects and grid infrastructure. Yet as demand for minerals ramps up, reports of systemic land rights violations, environmental degradation, attacks against human rights defenders and abuse of Indigenous Peoples’ rights continue unabated.

While Bolivia and Chile have long been in the global spotlight for their lithium resources, Argentina’s extraction is picking up pace – the country more than doubled its lithium output in 2024, producing 18,000 metric tons. Together with Peru, these three countries form a newly-recognised “lithium rectangle”. As the sector grows, allegations of abuse mount up: we recorded 21 alleged abuses linked to lithium in South America in the past two years alone.

Despite the huge impact of lithium mining, copper still dominates the field: the vast majority of allegations of abuse recorded in the region’s transition mineral sector are linked to copper mining. In Peru, this has led civil society to question extraction in the name of the energy transition, given its outsized impacts on local communities and Indigenous Peoples and the significant toll paid by ecosystems.

As the urgency of the energy transition intensifies, so does the responsibility to ensure that it is both fair and centred on workers and communities. Far more than a technological undertaking, the transition constitutes a fundamental social, political and ethical transformation. A just transition depends on reconfiguring mining and mineral supply chains to uphold three key principles: shared prosperity, human rights and social protection, and fair negotiations. A just transition also demands honest discussions around the end use of minerals, by prioritising their use to the energy transition and not military, and a profound socio-ecological transformation in which energy consumption is reduced to cover basic needs to everyone in the world and not only luxury in the Global North.

By the numbers: evidence from the Transition Minerals Tracker

The Business and Human Rights Centre’s (BHRC) 2026 global Transition Minerals Tracker (TMT) has recorded 1,226 allegations of human rights and environmental abuse linked to the extraction of these nine key transition minerals since 2010: bauxite, cobalt, copper, iron ore, lithium, manganese, nickel, zinc and rare earth minerals. South America continues to be the region with the highest number of allegations across all years (447 allegations of abuse).

Key findings from 2025

• We recorded 97 alleged abuses in South America in 2025. The majority (64) were related to copper mining, followed by lithium (10).
• Peru and Chile recorded more allegations of abuse than any other countries in the tracker, with 26 and 25 allegations in 2025 respectively.
• Top recorded abuses are mostly linked to environmental impacts (access to water and pollution of fragile ecosystems such as lakes, lagoons, aquifers and glaciers), inadequate consultation and lack of free, prior and informed consent (FPIC), non-compliance with agreements with communities, attacks on human rights defenders (HRDs), impacts on livelihoods and alleged violations of Indigenous Peoples’ rights.
• Local communities were impacted in the vast majority of cases of alleged abuse (54). Indigenous Peoples (27) continue to be disproportionately affected, as well workers (22). Communities where mining takes place are still steeped in poverty – despite the mining companies reaping high profits from exploiting their land. Women and girls are uniquely impacted by mining activities and disproportionately affected by violence near extractive sites.
• Human rights defenders regularly face attacks and violence when they speak out about mining operations. In 2025 we recorded six attacks against defenders raising concerns about transition mineral mining activities in South America.

In the face of these significant alleged abuses, people across South America are developing effective resistance to human rights harms associated with transition mineral mining. Recent years have seen a wave of litigation efforts initiated by communities and workers challenging rights abuses by irresponsible transition minerals mining: the BHRC Just Transition Litigation Tracking Tool has recorded 37 lawsuits filed against states and companies over abusive transition minerals mining projects, and Chile stands out as the country with the highest number of such cases worldwide. Local communities and Indigenous Peoples in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile and Peru are turning to the courts to resist harms reportedly caused by lithium mining, and companies are being fined for failing to comply with water management regulations, consultation, and free, prior and informed and consent, as well as environmental impacts to notable areas, discrimination, labour rights abuses, lack of access to information and public participation, among other issues.

Between 2024 and 2026, we conducted field visits to Argentina, Bolivia, Chile and Peru to hear from Indigenous Peoples and rural communities on the impacts of lithium and copper projects on their territories, and to explore the potential of international standards on business and human rights to drive a just energy transition in the region.

What are communities calling for? Priorities for a just transition

During our visits to Bolivia, Argentina, Chile and Peru in 2024-2026, Indigenous Peoples, grassroots communities, civil society organisations and human rights defenders examined the challenges associated with transition minerals and set out crucial steps for governments and companies to take in order to build a just energy transition. Key challenges identified included limited meaningful participation, insufficient respect for Indigenous Peoples’ rights, weak corporate accountability, and inadequate prevention and management of the social, environmental, and human rights risks associated with critical mineral extraction.

Testimonies from more than ten communities and five organisations reflected the key issues emerging from our data on alleged abuses and reinforced the need for a rights-respecting transition based on three core principles: shared prosperity, human rights and social protection, and fair negotiations. The experience and contributions of communities affected by transition mineral mining help translate these principles into tangible actions grounded in local realities and responsive to the specific needs, priorities and contexts of affected territories.

Key areas for action identified by participants included:

Shared prosperity

• Align benefit sharing mechanisms with the priorities defined by communities and workers. There is no single model applicable to all contexts: the design of such mechanisms must consider the cultural, social, economic and environmental specificities of each territory, recognising that benefits may include not only financial transfers but also employment opportunities, capacity building, community infrastructure, environmental protection, or other priorities identified by communities and workers.
• Ensure an equitable and adaptable distribution of benefits throughout the life cycle of mining projects. Impacts, risks, and opportunities evolve from the exploration phase through production, marketing, and closure of projects. Benefit-sharing arrangements must be sufficiently flexible to respond to changing circumstances. Establishing mechanisms for the periodic review and adjustment of agreements can help ensure that the distribution of benefits remains fair, inclusive, and sustainable over time, while reflecting the evolving needs and priorities of affected communities.
• Strengthen the autonomy, resilience, and collective well-being of communities. It is important to prioritise approaches that promote social cohesion, respect communities’ organisational structures, and ensure that benefits are not limited exclusively to individual financial compensation. True shared prosperity requires generating economic, social, cultural, and environmental value that endures beyond the project’s useful life.

Human rights and social protection

• Strengthen prevention and protection measures against the risks and impacts associated with mining for minerals needed for the energy transition. This involves adopting a comprehensive approach to human and environmental rights that considers the effects on health (including mental health), livelihoods, social cohesion, common goods and strategic ecosystems, while promoting community participation in identifying and monitoring these risks.
• Ensure a rights-based energy transition. This can be achieved by guaranteeing access to information, safe and meaningful consultation, and justice; protecting common natural resources, fragile ecosystems and the traditional knowledge of Indigenous Peoples; and incorporating community-based mechanisms for environmental monitoring and oversight.
• Strengthen protection, complaint and redress mechanisms for affected people and communities. This requires accessible, transparent and trusted channels that enable individuals and communities to report harms, seek remedy and receive timely responses. These mechanisms should include clear safeguards for human rights defenders and protect the rights to freedom of expression, association, organisation and reporting in both physical and digital spaces.

Fair negotiations

• Ensure a level playing field for negotiations. This is essential for reducing power imbalances through access to understandable information, independent technical advice, transparency, and effective accountability mechanisms. This involves strengthening mutual understanding among communities, companies, and governments, recognising both technical expertise and the traditional knowledge and worldviews of Indigenous Peoples and communities.
• Fully respect the right to free, prior and informed consultation and consent (FPIC), ensuring inclusive, non-discriminatory and culturally relevant processes. Decisions related to mining projects must take into account multidisciplinary and intercultural assessments that integrate scientific, social, environmental, and ancestral perspectives.
• Protect self-determination and community governance. Companies and governments involved in developing energy transition projects must respect communities’ deliberation timelines, avoid external pressures, and prevent practices that fragment collective representation or weaken social cohesion during negotiation.