With immense gratitude, International Rivers is proud to share our 2023 Annual Report and celebrate what supporters like you made possible.
From defending the free-flowing Salween River to leading the call for permanent river protections in Brazil and around the world to accelerating women’s leadership roles in water governance and more, this work is made possible because of the support of our incredible donors, partners, and allies worldwide.
Dive into our feature story on river defenders and the Salween – one of the world’s last major Free-flowing rivers.
The Salween River Defenders
In 2023, International Rivers doubled down on efforts to keep the Salween River wild and free by supporting Thailand’s Indigenous communities who took a bold legal stand to protect the river’s future.
In October, over 60 plaintiffs from these communities filed an unprecedented lawsuit against Thai government agencies over plans to construct the controversial Yuam/Salween Water Diversion Project. This massive project aims to build a dam and tunnel the river’s tributaries across western Thailand, irreparably damaging forests and potentially opening the door for further dams along the Salween itself.
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The Salween is one of the world’s last major undammed transboundary river systems. For over 2,800 kilometers, its life-giving waters course through the rugged lands of China, Myanmar and Thailand before reaching the Andaman Sea.
The Salween’s free flow nourishes immense biodiversity and sustains the livelihoods, cultures and ways of life for millions of ethnic minorities and Indigenous Peoples across the regions it traverses.
Large hydropower dams and water diversion have been proposed for more than four decades along the Salween’s main stem and tributaries throughout China, Thailand and Myanmar. Companies and the three governments have long eyed the Salween’s raging waters as an untapped resource to be conquered by concrete and conveyors.
By challenging the legal basis and environmental impact assessment process for this enormously destructive project, the plaintiffs. aimed a pivotal strike against broader dam efforts. The lawsuit filed by the Karen Indigenous communities marks a crucial step in the fight to protect the Salween, but the battle is far from over. As the legal process unfolds, International Rivers is committed to amplifying the voices of those on the frontlines and mobilizing
Read more in the 2023 Annual Report