27–29 October 2025
Chiang Mai, Thailand
The 4th Asia Environmental Human Rights Defenders (EHRD) Forum took place in person on 27–29 October 2025 in Chiang Mai, Thailand, under the theme “Conservation, Biodiversity and Human Rights.” Building on forums held in 2021, 2022, and 2023, it aimed to provide a safe and collaborative space for EHRDs from across Asia to discuss challenges, share good practices, and strengthen regional solidarity. Key objectives include promoting peer learning, supporting movement building, enhancing access to justice, and deepening understanding of the connections between biodiversity, conservation, and human rights.
The forum highlighted the urgent need for rights-based conservation as defenders, especially Indigenous Peoples, facing increasing risks, with recent data showing that most attacks in the region target land and environmental defenders.
The 4th edition had 150–200 participants, prioritising gender balance and the inclusion of groups in vulnerable situations such as Indigenous communities, local defenders, youth, LGBTQIA+ individuals, women, and persons with disabilities.
It was convened by the Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights (OHCHR), the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and UN Women together with the co-organising partners Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact Foundation (AIPP), Asia Research Institute for Environmental Law (ARIEL), Asia Pacific Network for Environmental Defenders (APNED), Business and Human Rights Resource Centre, EarthRights International, Global Witness, the Goldman Environmental Prize, Indigenous Peoples Rights International (IPRI), Publish What You Pay (PWYP), Women4Biodiversity, and Youth Empowerment Climate Action Platform (YECAP).
