Work

Science and the legal rights of nature

Year: 2023

Type: review

Abstract: We review the use of science by lawmakers and courts in implementing or rejecting legal rights for nature in Ecuador, India, the United States, and other jurisdictions where some type of rights of nature have been recognized in the legal system. We then use the "right to evolve" to exemplify how interdisciplinary work can (i) help courts effectively define what this right might entail; (ii) inform how it might be applied in different circumstances; and (iii) provide a template for how scientists and legal scholars can generate the interdisciplinary scholarship necessary to understand and implement the growing body of rights-of-nature laws, and environmental law more generally. We conclude by pointing to what further research is needed to understand and effectively implement the growing body of rights-of-nature laws.

Source: Science

DOI: 10.1126/science.adf4155

Authors: Yaffa Epstein, Aaron M. Ellison, Hugo Echeverría, Jessica K. Abbott

Institutions: Uppsala University, Swedish Collegium for Advanced Study, Harvard University, Universidad de los Hemisferios, Lund University

Language: English

Topic: Environmental law and policy

Subfield: Law

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Peace, justice, and strong institutions

Open Access status: hybrid

Funders: Swedish Collegium for Advanced Study, Svenska Forskningsrådet Formas, Riksbankens Jubileumsfond