GNV News: 2024/7/4

According to the latest study published in 6/2025, among the companies involved in environmental conflicts worldwide, just 2%—that is, 104 firms—are involved in as much as 20% of all environmental conflicts, meaning they repeatedly engage in similar environmental conflicts across multiple regions. This study is based on the environmental conflicts recorded as of 2024 in the world’s largest database that collects and documents environmental conflict cases, the Environmental Justice Atlas (EJAtlas). Hereafter, following the labeling used in the study, these 104 firms are referred to as “hyper-conflict companies.”

An environmental conflict refers to “a dispute arising from differences in interests or values regarding the environment,” and often resource development or business expansion by companies or governments adversely affects local residents’ land and livelihoods, health, human rights, and the natural environment, leading to conflict.

What is particularly noteworthy in this study is that half of the environmental conflicts involving companies from the Global North (high-income countries) occur in the Global South (low-income countries). About 90% of the “hyper-conflict companies” are multinationals, the majority of which are headquartered in high-income countries such as the United States, France, and Spain, as well as in China, and many operate in mining, fossil fuel industries, and agriculture-related sectors, affecting Indigenous peoples, traditional communities, and communities vulnerable to discrimination. The study also found that environmental conflicts involving multinationals tend to result in more severe socioeconomic impacts and worse outcomes.

At the same time, because 2/3 of the “hyper-conflict companies” are members of the UN Global Compact (a voluntary framework for corporate sustainability and social responsibility), the study highlights the limits of voluntary initiatives and the need for binding rules and accountability; and because some “hyper-conflict companies” receive high ESGratings (assessments of companies’ environmental, social, and governance initiatives and risk management), it also raises questions about the validity of ESG ratings.

Learn more about an example of environmental conflict in Latin America→“Latin America: Environmental Defenders Under Threat”

A map plotting environmental conflict cases around the world (Photo: EJAtlas [CC BY-NC-SA 3.0])