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The Universal Declaration of the Rights of Mother Earth

http://therightsofnature.org/universal-declaration

Legal Action: EarthRights International

This short film provides an overview of the work of EarthRights International

EarthRights International (ERI) is a nongovernmental, nonprofit organization that combines the power of law and the power of people in defense of earth rights. We specialize in fact-finding, legal actions against perpetrators of earth rights abuses, training grassroots and community leaders, and advocacy campaigns. Through these strategies, ERI seeks to end earth rights abuses, to provide real solutions for real people, and to promote and protect human rights and the environment in the communities where we work.

Law of the Rights of Mother Earth

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia >> see original article for updates & links.

Law of the Rights of Mother Earth (Spanish: Ley de Derechos de la Madre Tierra) is a a two-part Bolivian environmental law, the shorter version of which (the Ley Corta or Short Law) was passed by Bolivia's Plurinational Legislative Assembly in December 2010. The longer bill is scheduled to be considered by the Assembly in 2011.

The short law was presented by president Evo Morales at the 2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference.

According to a non-governmental organization's website, it "gives the 'Mother Earth' the character of collective subject of public interest, to ensure their rights".

The law defines Mother Earth as follows:

"the dynamic living system made ​​up of indivisible community of all living systems and living beings, interrelated, interdependent and complementary, which share a common destiny. Mother Earth is considered sacred by the cosmovisions of the indigenous originary campesino nations and peoples."

The short law proclaims the creation of the Defensoría de la Madre Tierra a counterpart to the human rights ombudsman office known as the Defensoría del Pueblo, but leaves its structuring and creation to future legislation.

The Pact of Unity, which unites Bolivian indigenous and campesino organizations, drafted the Law between the April 2010 World People's Conference on Climate Change and the Rights of Mother Earthand October 2010, when they finalized a proposed law.

This law, including a twelve-article short version, was modified for a later agreement with the Plurinational Legislative Assembly, represented by Senator Freddy Bersatti and Deputy Galo Silvestre. Two articles were subsequently stripped from the draft, including provisions for free, prior, and informed consent by indigenous peoples on whose land development projects are planned.

Drafting and legislative process

The law enumerates seven specific rights to be enjoyed by Mother Earth, constituent ecosystems, and human systems:

The right to life including the integrity of ecosystems and natural processes, and the necessary conditions for regeneration

The right to biodiversity which should be preserved without genetic modification

The right to water in sufficient quantity and quality to sustain life, protected from pollution

The right to clean air

The right to equilibrium through "maintain[ing] or restoring the interrelation, interdependence, complementarity, and functionality" of all parts of the Earth

The right to restoration of ecosystems damaged by human activity

The right to live free of pollution including toxic and radioactive waste

Precedent

The law is considered to be the first instance of environmental law published in Spanish which gives legal personhood to the natural system, and may also allow for citizens to sue individuals and groups on behalf of "Mother Earth" in response to real and alleged infringements of its integrity.