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Protecting life and vital ecosystems in Guyana & across the planet
Melinda Janki is an international lawyer opposing dangerous deep sea oil and gas exploitation offshore Guyana. Stopping these projects is non-negotiable for the ocean, the atmosphere, and life on earth — the stakes couldn’t be higher.
Watch Melinda's TED talk at the TED Countdown Summit in Nairobi June 2025.
The practice
Challenging
Oil & Gas
Greenhouse gas pollution causes global overheating, climate system breakdown and ocean acidification. Enough is enough. Fossil fuels cost the earth.
Protecting the
natural world
Humans are part of an intricate natural system. For millennia, the natural world has provided us with air, water, food and meaning. We must live in harmony with the earth and our more than human companions.
Defending indigenous
& native rights
From Guyana to West Papua and beyond, indigenous and native peoples have the right to self-determination for themselves and their territories.
Meet Melinda
Opposing a desperate and reckless fossil fuel industry in Guyana; writing national laws to protect nature and indigenous and local people; and winning victories in landmark court cases.
Legal Cases
Browse the case files here for the top-line details. Click through to learn more. View all cases here.
Wintress Morris and Joy Marcus v Environmental Protection Agency
Although the application was dismissed, Justice Morris-Ramlall confirmed that Scope 3 emissions must be assessed in EIAs under Guyana’s Environmental Protection Act. This ruling strengthens climate accountability, clarifies EPA’s statutory duty, and ensures fossil fuel projects like Exxon’s Hammerhead are subject to fuller environmental scrutiny.
4.3 billion tonnes
of CO2 equivalent would be released by burning that oil
$55 billion
worth of fossil gas was squandered through flaring 2021
$295 billion
per year needed in developing countries by 2050 to adapt to climate change
Media
German documentaries, American podcasts, Guyanese newspapers; fighting fossil fuels, defending the planet and upholding the rule of law has sparked interest across the globe. Browse publications related to my work below.