September 23, 2024
SHARE
CANADALAND
1028
#1028 The Canadian Plan to Dig a Goldmine in the Amazon
A small Canadian firm wants to build the largest goldmine in Brazil. But there’s no shortage of questions, allegations, investigations and legal battles swirling around the proposed project. Are local subsistence miners making false claims to drive Canadian competition off their land? Are Canadian mining executives violating human rights for an estimated $8 billion payout? Why is the UN investigating? What should the role of the Canadian government be in all this?
Cherise Seucharan
Reporter, CANADALAND
Jesse Brown
Host & Publisher
Sam Konnert
Producer
Caleb Thompson
Audio Editor
Bruce Thorson
Senior Producer

Earlier this year, the UN Special rapporteur for human rights defenders raised concerns about a Canadian company called Belo Sun Mining. She said people protesting the Belo Sun mine, who she refers to as land defenders, report being threatened, harassed and intimidated – some even say they were driven off their land. 

But Belo Sun denies these allegations, saying that they care about human rights, and that the project would bring much needed economic development to an impoverished area –  and the government of Brazil has seemingly supported their efforts.  

So who is Belo Sun – and how did they become the driving force behind the biggest proposed gold mine in Brazil? Are they guilty of the things that they’re accused of? And if so, what can the Canadian government do to stop it? 

Host: Jesse Brown  

Credits: Cherise Seucharan (Reporter), Caleb Thompson (Audio Editor), Sam Konnert (Audio Editor), max collins (Production Manager), Bruce Thorson (Senior Producer) 

Additional music by Audio Network

Further reading:

Sponsors: 

BetterHelp: Canadaland listeners head to https://betterhelp.com/canadaland to get started today and enjoy 10% off your first month. Discount code “canadaland” will be automatically applied.

Douglas is giving our listeners a FREE Sleep Bundle with each mattress purchase. Get the sheets, pillows, mattress and pillow protectors FREE with your Douglas purchase today. Visit Douglas.ca/Canadaland to claim this offer! 

CAMH is building better mental health care for everyone to ensure no one is left behind. ● This Mental Illness Awareness Week, your donation to CAMH will be matched. Visit camh.ca/wtf to double your impact.

If you value this podcast, support us! You’ll get premium access to all our shows ad free, including early releases and bonus content. You’ll also get our exclusive newsletter, discounts on merch at our store, tickets to our live and virtual events, and more than anything, you’ll be a part of the solution to Canada’s journalism crisis, you’ll be keeping our work free and accessible to everybody.

You can listen ad-free on Amazon Music—included with Prime.

More from this series
The army of hidden workers who fool you into thinking AI is magic.
January 13, 2025
This is one shitty story. Is Canada’s sewage infrastructure ready to be flushed?
January 6, 2025
Since the blockbuster success of his musical “Hamilton,” Lin-Manuel Miranda has been busy: acting, directing, and composing for Disney projects, including the upcoming movie “Mufasa: The Lion King.” 
December 30, 2024
“…you have this attempt to actually change the Aurora Borealis. to affect it physically. This was called Project Waterhole. So they sent up a rocket with 100 kilograms of explosives, and exploded it in the Aurora Borealis band. Within two seconds, they had created a 40 kilometer wide hole in the Aurora Borealis.” - from The Forgotten Need to Probe the Sky
December 23, 2024
“Here's something that not many people know about the baby business.  There are ‘leg-men.’ We call them ‘leg-men’ though some of them are women, who make it their business to find pregnant women who are not married. The leg-men look for them in a million and one places. They meet them in bars and parks and cafes and all over. They hear things.”  - Eugene Moyneur (ex-wrester, ex-bodybuilder, baby-smuggler)
December 16, 2024
“The people who want to play morality police and decide who does or doesn't get to speak, they're not qualified arbiters of anything.” - Caryma Sa’d
December 9, 2024
Are dentists defrauding the Canadian government?
December 2, 2024
The Millenium Bug was supposed to bring the world to a halt, but governments claimed they squashed the problem. Was it all a panic over nothing?
November 28, 2024
all podcasts arrow All Podcasts
CANADALAND