Antonia melo da silva - foto por verena glass

Antônia Melo da Silva (born 1949) is a Brazilian

human rights Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...

activist and

environmentalist Environmentalism is a broad Philosophy of life, philosophy, ideology, and social movement about supporting life, habitats, and surroundings. While environmentalism focuses more on the environmental and nature-related aspects of Green politics, g ...

. In 2017, she received the Alexander Soros Foundation Award for Environmental and Human Rights Activism for leading campaigns against the construction of the

Belo Monte Dam The Belo Monte Dam (''formerly known as'' Kararaô) is a hydroelectric dam complex on the northern part of the Xingu River in the state of Pará, Brazil. After its completion, with the installation of its 18th turbine, in November 2019, the in ...

and other environmentally harmful projects in the

Amazon rainforest The Amazon rainforest, also called the Amazon jungle or Amazonia, is a Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, moist broadleaf tropical rainforest in the Amazon biome that covers most of the Amazon basin of South America. This basin ...

Biography

Born in

Piripiri, Piauí Piripiri, Piauí is a municipality in the state of Piauí in the Northeast region of Brazil. The city's population numbered approximately 63,787 people as of 2020. The municipality contains part of the Serra da Ibiapaba Environmental Protect ...

, in 1949, Antônia Melo da Silva was brought up by peasant parents who taught her the importance of fighting for their land and their rights. In 1953, she and her family moved to

Altamira, Pará Altamira is one of one hundred and forty-four municipalities in the state of Pará, in northern Brazil. It has an area of , making it the largest municipality by area both in Pará state and Brazil, and until 2009 it was the world's largest muni ...

, and settled in Conceição do Araguaia on the banks of the

Xingu River The Xingu River ( ; ; ) is a river in north Brazil. It is a southeast tributary of the Amazon River and one of the largest clearwater rivers in the Amazon basin, accounting for about 5% of its water. __TOC__ Description and history The fir ...

where her parents developed a successful farm. In 1959, she attended a religious school and then trained to be a teacher. In 1970, she married and moved to a house in Altamira where she raised a family of four children while working as a teacher. From the late 1980s, she became active in a number of organizations founded to protect the rights of the indigenous people living in the area, in particular by campaigning against the construction of the Belo Monte Dam. In May 2008, she was a co-founder of the Movimento Xingu Vivo Para Sempre which fought against the construction of the dam and the related hydroelectric project. Over the years, the movement combined social and environmental organizations with communities along the river including fishermen, agricultural workers, town dwellers, native peoples and religious and women's organizations. Despite her campaigning, the Belo Monte Dam was built and Melo had to move out of her home. But she has since become involved in many similar movements and has been able until now to counter plans for the construction of a huge dam on the

Tapajós River The Tapajós ( ) is a river in Brazil. It runs through the Amazon Rainforest and is a major tributary of the Amazon River. When combined with the Juruena River, the Tapajós is approximately long. Prior to a drastic increase in illegal gold mi ...

. In honouring Antônia Melo with the Foundation Award,

Alexander Soros Alexander Soros (born October 27, 1985) is an American investor and philanthropist. One of the five children of billionaire George Soros, he chairs the Board of Directors of the Open Society Foundations and sits on the investment committee for ...

commented: "She is one of the heroes of the environmental and human rights movement, and I can't think of anyone who deserves the Alexander Soros Foundation Award more than she does."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Melo, Antonia 1949 births Brazilian conservationists Brazilian women environmentalists Living people People from Altamira, Pará People from Piauí Women human rights activists