Sofia Gatica
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Sofía Gatica | |
|---|---|
| Born | Sofía Gatica 1967 (age 58–59) |
| Occupation | environmentalist |
| Awards | Goldman Environmental Prize (2012) |
Sofía Gatica (born 1967) is an Argentine environmentalist, whose infant daughter Sofia, died just three days after her birth of kidney failure, which is likely caused by pesticide exposure.[1] She was awarded the Goldman Environmental Prize in 2012, for her fight against the use of toxic pesticides used in agriculture in Argentina, in particular agents containing glyphosate and endosulfan.[2] In November 2013 she was threatened with death at gunpoint and beaten by unidentified men.[3][4]
The trigger for Gatica's commitment was the death of her daughter, who died of kidney failure three days after birth in the late 1990s. She researched the causes of the disease and in conversation with neighbors came across worrying and inexplicable health problems. Gatica attributed this to spraying campaigns with the herbicides Roundup and Endosulfan in the immediate vicinity of residential areas. The place where Gaticas lives is surrounded by genetically modified soybean plantations that have been regularly sprayed with appropriate herbicides.[5]
Gatica subsequently founded the group the Mothers of Ituzaingó, which set itself the goal of stopping the ruthless use of agrochemicals. They conducted a door-to-door survey, the first epidemiology survey in the region on the effects of pesticide spraying on human health. The results showed that cancer was 41 times higher than the national average, and the incidence of neurological diseases, respiratory diseases, birth defects and child mortality were also noticeable.
Based on this knowledge, the Mothers of Ituzaingó contacted Argentine environmental organizations and initiated a stop spraying campaign. Press conferences and demonstrations on the subject were organized, and brochures were issued to educate the population about the dangers of pesticides. Gatica contacted scientific institutions and asked for studies that supported her observations.[6]
The activities of the Gatica group were made more difficult by the fact that there was no direct way to demand accountability from Monsanto DuPont and other global agrochemical groups. Pressure was also exerted on the group by police officers and local business people. In 2007 Gatica was threatened by a person who had broken her house while using weapons and asked to drop her involvement.[7]