The New York-based environmental group Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) has made opposition to large hydroelectric projects in Chilean Patagonia one of its top priorities in Latin America in recent years. The group has joined local partners to take aim in particular at HidroAysén, a controversial hydropower project that calls for the construction of five major dams on the Baker and Pascua rivers in the southern Aysén region. At the center of NRDC effort in this regard is Amanda Maxwell, who has worked since July 2009 as the organization’s Chile campaign point person. Based in the group’s Washington, D.C. office, Maxwell also serves as NRDC’s Latin America Advocate, coordinating both its Patagonia campaign projects and its initiatives to promote the development of sustainable energy and energy efficiency throughout the region. EcoAméricas correspondent James Langman recently spoke with Maxwell about NRDC’s work in Chile and other Latin American countries. [Log in to read more]

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