How is this trend related to the rise of authoritarianism?

The last couple of decades have seen a rise in the killing and detention of journalists, activists, and Indigenous people who are defending land and other natural resources from the abuses and exploitation of governments and corporations. The number of environmental activists being jailed and killed has risen sharply in recent years. How might the repression of environmental activists around the world impact the environmental movement? What are the implications for democracy and multilateral governance? Some questions to think about: How is this trend related to the rise of authoritarianism? Why are environmental activists specifically being targeted? Who benefits from the killing environmental activists? Some possible resources: Mexico’s Environmental Activists Killed for Resisting Infrastructure Projects https://www.insightcrime.org/news/brief/mexico-environmental-activists-killed/ (Links to an external site.) Men Connected to Butterfly Sanctuary Are Found Dead https://www.npr.org/2020/02/03/802359415/sadness-and-worry-after-2-men-connected-to-butterfly-sanctuary-are-found-dead (Links to an external site.) 164 Environmental Activists Were Killed While Protecting Their Homes Last Year https://time.com/5638438/global-witness-environmental-activists-murdered/ (Links to an external site.) Environmental activist murders double in 15 years https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/aug/05/environmental-activist-murders-double (Links to an external site.)