Our Impact
In a nationwide referendum Bolivia overhauled its federal constitution to include new rights for citizens to take part in public policy making and be consulted and informed of decisions that may effect environmental quality and natural resource use. The constitution included rights of citizens to air greviances before an environmental and agricultural court. These provisions are largely the result of work by The Access Iniatiative Secretariat, and TAI partner PRODENA, one of Bolivia’s oldest environmental advocacy organizations. “Using a toolkit WRI developed, together we identified weaknesses in Bolivia’s proposed new constitution regulating public access to environmental information, participation, and justice,” . Based on these assessments, PRODENA advocated tirelessly for the inclusion of such rights, which Bolivia’s government adopted into the text of the constitution.
“It’s a great result,” continues de Silva, “the type we envisioned when we launched The Access Initiative a decade ago.”