SOAS Environmental Law Clinic partners with Lawyers for Nature on rights of nature representative model mapping report
The SOAS Pro-Bono Environmental Law and Policy Clinic has released a new report mapping and analysing global 'Rights of Nature' case studies.
Representing Rights of Nature: A Survey of Representative Forms was developed in collaboration with Lawyers for Nature, a collective of lawyers and researchers working and campaigning on behalf of nature.
Alex May from Lawyers for Nature praised the collaboration, stating, "It was great to partner with the SOAS Clinic on this project. The students were enthusiastic and committed to the research. Gathering various Rights of Nature case studies into one report is a valuable contribution to the knowledge base and will help campaigners in developing new nature guardianship bodies."
Gathering various Rights of Nature case studies into one report is a valuable contribution to the knowledge base and will help campaigners in developing new nature guardianship bodies
The report highlights the growing use of Rights of Nature as an innovative legal tool for environmental protection, addressing colonial legacies, and reconceptualising human-nature relations. The legal framing positions nature as a subject of law, rather than an object for human use. As of June 2024, over 500 initiatives worldwide have recognised the Rights of Nature.
Focusing on highlighting and analysing ‘representative models’ of Rights of Nature globally, the report is a crucial resource for community organisers, lawyers, NGOs, researchers, and policymakers interested in advocating for and operationalising the Rights of Nature. Nate Palmer, a SOAS PhD Candidate who coordinated the project, celebrated the collaboration with Lawyers for Nature and SOAS students. He stated that ‘Rights of Nature continues to garner international recognition and develop further conceptual clarity. This project will only build on these victories while establishing a strong relationship between SOAS and Lawyers for Nature that we hope to carry into the future.’
This report marks the second Rights of Nature project by the SOAS Environmental Law and Policy Clinic in 2023/24. The clinic also recently completed a pro bono project mapping UK-protected species along the River Ouse in Sussex, contributing to a campaign to grant the river legal rights.
For more information on the SOAS Environmental Law & Policy Clinic and ongoing initiatives, visit SOAS Law Clinic.
Image by Gennaro Leonardi from Pixabay