The Rights of Nature
Last week I returned from a trip to Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands. I spent a week researching, gathering interviews, and filming b-roll concerning a piece of environmental legislation that was passed in Ecuador several years ago. "The Right of Nature" is a legal concept similar to the Endangered Species Act, but focuses more broadly on entire ecosystems. Since its adoption in Ecuador, the concept has spread to Europe, North America and the South Pacific. I'll be working with Hal Crimmel (Chair of the English Department at Weber State University) and Dr. Valeria Berros (A professor of law at the University of Littoral, Argentina and a researcher at CONICET) to create a documentary on the "The Rights of Nature" this coming year. Here are a few of the people we were able to meet and interview on our trip to Ecuador.
Arturo Izurieta is head of the Charles Darwin Foundation Research Center on the Galapagos Islands. Izurieta did his doctoral thesis on the threats faced by indigenous peoples in Australia and gave us insight into why "The Right of Nature" legistlation started in Ecuador based on the needs of their indigenous population. This interview is shot on a patio outside Izurieta's Galapagos Islands office. Nice view!
Alberto Acosta is the former head of of the Ecuador Constitutional Assembly and was a key figure in bringing forth "The Right of Nature" legislation. His role would be comparable to the United States Speaker of the House.
Valeria Berros is a professor of law at the University of Littoral and a researcher at The National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET) of Argentina. She has been researching the impacts of "The Right of Nature" legislation for several years and was recently awarded a fellowship at the Rachel Carson Center for Environment and Society in Munich, Germany.
“What I find interesting about the rights of nature is that they provide a new perspective to try to generate new ways both to avoid pollution and to protect certain natural areas. In fact... we started thinking about extending rights beyond the human limit.”