Rights of Nature
The recognition of the Rights of Nature in our legal systems is a necessary element of the shift towards an Earth-centred governance. What it is meant by Rights of Nature is the recognition that ecosystems have, and are entitled to, their rights just as human beings have and therefore these should be ensured in law. Rights of nature acknowledge that nature in all its life forms (which includes humans) has the right to exist, persist, maintain and regenerate its vital cycles. Recognizing such rights in law will not mean that humans will not be able to eat fruits or that we will not be able any more to walk on grass to avoid being sued. It is about a balancing exercise between what is good and necessary for our survival and well-being against what is good for other species and the planet as a whole. For indigenous communities recognizing rights of nature is simply what is so, all beings, including humans, are deeply connected. Decisions and values are based on what is good for the whole.
For millennia legal systems around the world have treated nature as a commodity and laws are written to protect the property rights of individuals, corporations and other legal entities, actually legalizing environmental harm by regulating how much pollution or destruction of nature can occur within the law. We have the legal authority and responsibility to enforce Rights of Nature in law on behalf of ecosystems. The ecosystem itself can be named as a rights bearing subject with standing in a court of law. Rights of Nature are far from being unthinkable, in fact they are have already been recognised in several countries. Ecuador has already recognized rights of nature in its constitution, and a growing number of communities in the United States are basing their environmental protection systems on the premise that nature has inalienable rights, just as humans do. Wild Law UK is a member of Global Alliance for the Rights of Nature, a global movement established in late 2010 to promote legal rights for nature. It's a powerful idea whose time has come. Women, children and 'slaves' were treated as property under the law in the past. We need a new civil rights movement to stop nature being treated as a slave. We also support the global campaign for the rights of Mother Earth. |
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Rights of Nature precedents and developments across the world
UK:
There is increasing support for rights of nature legislation in the UK, and the calls are not just coming from Wild Law UK. London based organisation Whale of a Time is also supporting the Universal Declaration of the Rights of Mother Earth. In autumn 2011 an e-petition was created calling for the Government to adopt a Rights of Nature Bill: 'to address the rebalancing of 'Corporate Interests' versus that of 'Eco-Systems Rights'. In short, Nature cannot speak up for itself, so we must speak for Nature, and future generations, before it is too late.' Please sign that petition here.
London based barrister and wild lawyer Polly Higgins is also campaigning to get Ecocide recognised as an International Crime Against Peace. Recognising the rights of nature is not the end game - we also need a law which imposes sanctions against those who violate the rights of nature, since it is meaningless to have rights which are unenforceable. This is one reason why it is vital to make Ecocide a crime.
South America:
In April 2011 Bolivia passed the Law of Mother Earth. This gives nature various rights, including the right to exist, the right to continue its vital processes free from human alteration, the right to water and clean air, the right to balance and the right not to be polluted. In addition, the rights of nature will include the right not to be genetically altered and not to be affected by mega infrastructure or development projects that affect the balance of ecosystems. Read more.
In 2008 Ecuador became the first country in the world to pass a constitution giving rights to nature, including the right to exist, persist, maintain and regenerate its vital cycles (see Articles 71 - 74).
The first successful rights for nature case under the constitution was presented to the Provincial Court of Loja on 30 March 2011 and concerned the Vilcabama river which was being polluted by excavation material, altering its flow and putting riverside communities at greater risk of harm from floods. The court granted an injunction against the Provincial Government of Loja. The case shows that rights for nature law is workable.
On 26 November 2010 Vandana Shiva and other defenders of nature filed a lawsuit in the constitutional court of Ecuador against BP following the Deepwater Horizon disaster which started in April 2010. The plaintiffs were able to do this as the rights for nature provisions in Ecuador's constitution have universal jurisdiction. The court of Ecuador has accepted the case.
United States:
The first legal structures which recognised the rights of nature were adopted by local municipalities in the United States. In 2006 Tamaqua Borough, Pennsylvania adopted a Sewage Sludge Ordinance which meant that corporations could not spread sewage sludge as fertiliser on farmland, even where the owner of the land consented. The Ordinance recognises the rights of natural communities and ecosystems to exist and flourish, and recognised ecosystems as legal persons (s 7.6). Corporations may not interfere with the right of ecosystems to exist and flourish and Tamaqua residents can pursue actions on behalf of ecosystems.
Two dozen municipalities across the US have now adopted local laws recognising the rights of nature, with Pittsburgh being the first city to recognise the rights of nature in law (s 4.2), in November 2010.
On 21 June 2011 Baldwin Borough Council voted to adopt a community rights ordinance that bans the corporate extraction of natural gas. The ordinance includes a 'bill of rights' that asserts the rights of natural communities. Eric Belcastro, of CELDF, who drafted the Ordinance, said: "it puts into practice the fundamental rights that belong to every member of the community, and it makes real the oaths taken by each member of Council who swore to “protect the health, safety and welfare” of the community."
There is increasing support for rights of nature legislation in the UK, and the calls are not just coming from Wild Law UK. London based organisation Whale of a Time is also supporting the Universal Declaration of the Rights of Mother Earth. In autumn 2011 an e-petition was created calling for the Government to adopt a Rights of Nature Bill: 'to address the rebalancing of 'Corporate Interests' versus that of 'Eco-Systems Rights'. In short, Nature cannot speak up for itself, so we must speak for Nature, and future generations, before it is too late.' Please sign that petition here.
London based barrister and wild lawyer Polly Higgins is also campaigning to get Ecocide recognised as an International Crime Against Peace. Recognising the rights of nature is not the end game - we also need a law which imposes sanctions against those who violate the rights of nature, since it is meaningless to have rights which are unenforceable. This is one reason why it is vital to make Ecocide a crime.
South America:
In April 2011 Bolivia passed the Law of Mother Earth. This gives nature various rights, including the right to exist, the right to continue its vital processes free from human alteration, the right to water and clean air, the right to balance and the right not to be polluted. In addition, the rights of nature will include the right not to be genetically altered and not to be affected by mega infrastructure or development projects that affect the balance of ecosystems. Read more.
In 2008 Ecuador became the first country in the world to pass a constitution giving rights to nature, including the right to exist, persist, maintain and regenerate its vital cycles (see Articles 71 - 74).
The first successful rights for nature case under the constitution was presented to the Provincial Court of Loja on 30 March 2011 and concerned the Vilcabama river which was being polluted by excavation material, altering its flow and putting riverside communities at greater risk of harm from floods. The court granted an injunction against the Provincial Government of Loja. The case shows that rights for nature law is workable.
On 26 November 2010 Vandana Shiva and other defenders of nature filed a lawsuit in the constitutional court of Ecuador against BP following the Deepwater Horizon disaster which started in April 2010. The plaintiffs were able to do this as the rights for nature provisions in Ecuador's constitution have universal jurisdiction. The court of Ecuador has accepted the case.
United States:
The first legal structures which recognised the rights of nature were adopted by local municipalities in the United States. In 2006 Tamaqua Borough, Pennsylvania adopted a Sewage Sludge Ordinance which meant that corporations could not spread sewage sludge as fertiliser on farmland, even where the owner of the land consented. The Ordinance recognises the rights of natural communities and ecosystems to exist and flourish, and recognised ecosystems as legal persons (s 7.6). Corporations may not interfere with the right of ecosystems to exist and flourish and Tamaqua residents can pursue actions on behalf of ecosystems.
Two dozen municipalities across the US have now adopted local laws recognising the rights of nature, with Pittsburgh being the first city to recognise the rights of nature in law (s 4.2), in November 2010.
On 21 June 2011 Baldwin Borough Council voted to adopt a community rights ordinance that bans the corporate extraction of natural gas. The ordinance includes a 'bill of rights' that asserts the rights of natural communities. Eric Belcastro, of CELDF, who drafted the Ordinance, said: "it puts into practice the fundamental rights that belong to every member of the community, and it makes real the oaths taken by each member of Council who swore to “protect the health, safety and welfare” of the community."
