Indigenous Leaders and Scholars Discuss the Ecological and Cultural Costs of Amazon’s Africa Headquarters in Cape Town

Amazon’s Africa Headquarters in Cape Town and its ecological costs for Indigenous People

CAPE TOWN, WESTERN CAPE PROVINCE, SOUTH AFRICA, February 20, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The Anti-Racism Initiative of the G20 Interfaith Forum (IF20), the world’s leading organization focused on the intersection of faith and policy, is gathering world-renowned experts on Indigenous rights, ecology, and environmental justice to discuss the construction of Amazon’s Africa Headquarters in Cape Town and its ecological costs for Indigenous People.

Despite significant criticism and legal resistance from Khoi and San groups, Amazon has been constructing its Africa headquarters in the Cape Town neighborhood of Observatory since mid-2021. The designated construction site lies within the Two Rivers Urban Park—a floodplain with high biodiversity that functions as the “green lung” of Cape Town. Known as Ingamirodi !khaes, meaning “the place where the stars gather,” the site is revered as sacred and holds profound significance for the cultural and spiritual identity of the Khoi and San as Indigenous peoples.

Marita Wagner, who will moderate the webinar, submitted a statement on behalf of the IF20 Anti-Racism Initiative:

“The construction of Amazon’s Africa headquarters in Cape Town is a striking example of the externalization of ecological costs to the Global South while value is created and consumer demand is satisfied in the Global North,” Wagner said. “In the case of Amazon in South Africa, it becomes evident how socio-spiritual fabrics of human coexistence—in harmony with the environment and the more-than-human world—are threatened and fractured by neo-colonial capitalist power interests.”

Gaob Martinus Fredericks, an Indigenous leader who will take part in the webinar, said the loss is impacting his people deeply:

“The destruction of our ancestral lands and the erasure of our institutional memory through building developments by foreign based companies bring back the pain of our forefathers having to watch how they lost everything, disconnecting us from our ancestral roots.”

The virtual meeting will take place on Thursday, February 26, 2026, from 7:30pm–9:00pm SAST (12:30pm–2:00pm EST / 7:30am–9:00am HST), and will aim to accomplish three purposes:

1. Discuss the construction of Amazon’s Africa Headquarters in Cape Town and its ecological costs for the First Nation Khoi and San peoples
2. Clearly articulate the intersection of global corporate power, environmental racism, and Indigenous dispossession as a form of neo-colonial extraction
3. Elevate Indigenous knowledge, cosmo-spirituality, and decolonial practices of resistance as vital frameworks for environmental justice

Register for the free webinar at https://www.g20interfaith.org/if20-anti-racism-initiative-webinar-series-2026/

Speakers will include:

• Marita Wagner – Moderator; theologian and researcher specializing in postcolonial theology, environmental justice, and Indigenous rights
• Danab Dr. Gregg Fick – Interim leader of FINSA (First Nation of South Africa); San and Khoe activist; founding member of the A/Xarra Restorative Justice Forum; advocate for the recognition of Indigenous “Coloured People” as Aboriginal people of southern Africa
• Gaob Martinus Fredericks – Gaob of the !Aman // Aes, appointed by the Royal Family in Bethanie, Namibia; Environmental Officer and Biophysical and Environmental Specialist; founder of the A/Xarra Restorative Justice Forum; researcher on rural land reform and Khoi and San cultural heritage

About the G20 Process

The Group of Twenty, or G20, is the premier forum for international economic cooperation, bringing together the leaders of Earth’s most prosperous economies. Collectively, G20 members represent around 80 percent of the world’s economic output, two-thirds of the global population and three-quarters of international trade. Throughout the year, representatives from G20 countries gather to discuss financial and socioeconomic issues as well as broader humanitarian issues targeted by the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.

About the G20 Interfaith Forum

The G20 Interfaith Forum seeks global solutions by collaborating with religious thought leaders and political representatives to help shape the overall G20 agenda. It draws on the vital roles that religious institutions and beliefs play in world affairs, reflecting a rich diversity of institutions, ideas, and values. Through its extensive network of networks, it helps prioritize key global policy goals and point toward practical means of implementation at every level of society.

For more information, please visit www.g20interfaith.org.

Marianna Richardson
G20 Interfaith Forum
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