Are you a good listener? Let’s start with rhubarb. A few years ago a farm in Yorkshire posted a recording of their rhubarb shed online. The bursting buds and squelching mud are quite a surprise – a mixture of popcorn and beatboxing.

Tuning into the soundscape is an important way of reconnecting with the rest of the living planet – bird calls, the thrum of pollinators and running water to name but a few – but not all the sounds around us are therapeutic.

This article was first published in Resurgence & Ecologist magazine. 

According to the World Health Organization, exposure to environmental noise like road traffic and aircraft can lead to a number of health problems, including heart disease and cognitive impairment among children.

Resurgent voices

In the current issue of Resurgence & Ecologist magazine we visit several innovative projects exploring the use of sound (and absence of sound) to aid health and reconnect with Nature.

David Orr writes about the role of music in environmental activism and we interview artist Jackie Morris, whose book The Lost Words, co-authored with Robert Macfarlane, is now finding expression in music.

In Keynotes, Michelle Brenner discusses why quieting our inner noise is so important for good communication.

To mark this theme, we are also launching a second series of our popular Resurgence Voices podcast, and a special series of soundscapes called Resurgence Sounds. The first one features my particular favourite – the stream at the bottom of my allotment.

There are other voices that must be heard. Greta Thunberg and youth strikers for climate action have called a global climate strike on 20 September. We at Resurgence will be joining them.

In preparation we are holding a banner-making workshop at our new Resurgence Centre. Details of this will be posted online. Extinction Rebellion are planning autumn actions and in New York the UN Climate Action Summit is calling for governments to present concrete plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050. Meanwhile, the UK prepares for Brexit.

Starting a dialogue

In a world where debate (political and otherwise) all too often consists of shouting over opposing views, good listening skills are more important than ever.

As Jane Goodall said: “Change happens by listening and then starting a dialogue with the people who are doing something you don’t believe is right.”

Whether it’s our view on how to tackle the climate crisis – or indeed what we think about rhubarb – attentive listening can change the way we see things.

This Author 

Marianne Brown is editor of Resurgence & Ecologist magazine. This article was first published in Resurgence & Ecologist magazine. 

Image: Irfancanon, Pixabay.

People underestimate how hot the world has become and how much plastic waste has ended up in the environment, research suggests.

Misconceptions about the impact humans are having on the planet are widespread, according to the study by the Policy Institute at King’s College London.

Only a quarter of people quizzed by Ipsos Mori for the research correctly identified that all 20 of the world’s hottest years on record had occurred in the last 22 years.

Wildlife

On average, people guessed that 12 of the hottest years had occurred in that time, the figures show.

Members of the public also underestimate how much plastic waste has ended up in the environment, suggesting on average that just under half (49 percent) of the 6.3 billion tonnes of the material created globally has ended up in landfill or as litter – when the true figure is 79 percent.

Just nine percent has been recycled, far lower than the average estimate of 26 percent by people polled.

Only a third of the public correctly think that the population sizes of mammals, birds, fish and reptiles in the world has fallen by 60% since 1970, which is the estimate made by conservation organisations WWF and ZSL.

Half of people thought wildlife populations had fallen by 25 percent in that time.

Mis-perceptions

There were also misconceptions about where greenhouse gases are coming from, with those polled suggesting that 20% of pollution came from flying – compared to the real figure of two percent.

People also overestimated the role of recycling in reducing their carbon footprint, and underestimated the impact of avoiding one transatlantic flight.

And just 21 percent selected having one fewer child as a top way of cutting an individual’s greenhouse gas emissions, although it is the most significant thing that can be done, the research said.

Bobby Duffy, director of the Policy Institute at King’s College London and author of The Perils of Perception: Why We’re Wrong About Nearly Everything which is being published in paperback, said: “It is vital to understand public mis-perceptions about climate change and the natural environment – but not just so that we can bombard people with more information.”

Widespread

He said his book showed “we can’t just provide facts and expect people to hear them and act, regardless of how extraordinary those facts are”.

Prof Duffy also warned that there was not enough understanding about how fear, hope and a sense of the effectiveness of actions interacted in motivating people.

“But it’s just as naive to believe we know the right emotional buttons to push: we don’t understand enough about how fear, hope and a sense of efficacy interact in motivating action in different individuals.”

He added: “A little more understanding of the scale of the issues, the most effective actions we can take and just how normal and widespread concern has become couldn’t hurt.”

This Author

Emily Beament is the PA environment correspondent.

People underestimate how hot the world has become and how much plastic waste has ended up in the environment, research suggests.

Misconceptions about the impact humans are having on the planet are widespread, according to the study by the Policy Institute at King’s College London.

Only a quarter of people quizzed by Ipsos Mori for the research correctly identified that all 20 of the world’s hottest years on record had occurred in the last 22 years.

Wildlife

On average, people guessed that 12 of the hottest years had occurred in that time, the figures show.

Members of the public also underestimate how much plastic waste has ended up in the environment, suggesting on average that just under half (49 percent) of the 6.3 billion tonnes of the material created globally has ended up in landfill or as litter – when the true figure is 79 percent.

Just nine percent has been recycled, far lower than the average estimate of 26 percent by people polled.

Only a third of the public correctly think that the population sizes of mammals, birds, fish and reptiles in the world has fallen by 60% since 1970, which is the estimate made by conservation organisations WWF and ZSL.

Half of people thought wildlife populations had fallen by 25 percent in that time.

Mis-perceptions

There were also misconceptions about where greenhouse gases are coming from, with those polled suggesting that 20% of pollution came from flying – compared to the real figure of two percent.

People also overestimated the role of recycling in reducing their carbon footprint, and underestimated the impact of avoiding one transatlantic flight.

And just 21 percent selected having one fewer child as a top way of cutting an individual’s greenhouse gas emissions, although it is the most significant thing that can be done, the research said.

Bobby Duffy, director of the Policy Institute at King’s College London and author of The Perils of Perception: Why We’re Wrong About Nearly Everything which is being published in paperback, said: “It is vital to understand public mis-perceptions about climate change and the natural environment – but not just so that we can bombard people with more information.”

Widespread

He said his book showed “we can’t just provide facts and expect people to hear them and act, regardless of how extraordinary those facts are”.

Prof Duffy also warned that there was not enough understanding about how fear, hope and a sense of the effectiveness of actions interacted in motivating people.

“But it’s just as naive to believe we know the right emotional buttons to push: we don’t understand enough about how fear, hope and a sense of efficacy interact in motivating action in different individuals.”

He added: “A little more understanding of the scale of the issues, the most effective actions we can take and just how normal and widespread concern has become couldn’t hurt.”

This Author

Emily Beament is the PA environment correspondent.

People underestimate how hot the world has become and how much plastic waste has ended up in the environment, research suggests.

Misconceptions about the impact humans are having on the planet are widespread, according to the study by the Policy Institute at King’s College London.

Only a quarter of people quizzed by Ipsos Mori for the research correctly identified that all 20 of the world’s hottest years on record had occurred in the last 22 years.

Wildlife

On average, people guessed that 12 of the hottest years had occurred in that time, the figures show.

Members of the public also underestimate how much plastic waste has ended up in the environment, suggesting on average that just under half (49 percent) of the 6.3 billion tonnes of the material created globally has ended up in landfill or as litter – when the true figure is 79 percent.

Just nine percent has been recycled, far lower than the average estimate of 26 percent by people polled.

Only a third of the public correctly think that the population sizes of mammals, birds, fish and reptiles in the world has fallen by 60% since 1970, which is the estimate made by conservation organisations WWF and ZSL.

Half of people thought wildlife populations had fallen by 25 percent in that time.

Mis-perceptions

There were also misconceptions about where greenhouse gases are coming from, with those polled suggesting that 20% of pollution came from flying – compared to the real figure of two percent.

People also overestimated the role of recycling in reducing their carbon footprint, and underestimated the impact of avoiding one transatlantic flight.

And just 21 percent selected having one fewer child as a top way of cutting an individual’s greenhouse gas emissions, although it is the most significant thing that can be done, the research said.

Bobby Duffy, director of the Policy Institute at King’s College London and author of The Perils of Perception: Why We’re Wrong About Nearly Everything which is being published in paperback, said: “It is vital to understand public mis-perceptions about climate change and the natural environment – but not just so that we can bombard people with more information.”

Widespread

He said his book showed “we can’t just provide facts and expect people to hear them and act, regardless of how extraordinary those facts are”.

Prof Duffy also warned that there was not enough understanding about how fear, hope and a sense of the effectiveness of actions interacted in motivating people.

“But it’s just as naive to believe we know the right emotional buttons to push: we don’t understand enough about how fear, hope and a sense of efficacy interact in motivating action in different individuals.”

He added: “A little more understanding of the scale of the issues, the most effective actions we can take and just how normal and widespread concern has become couldn’t hurt.”

This Author

Emily Beament is the PA environment correspondent.

People underestimate how hot the world has become and how much plastic waste has ended up in the environment, research suggests.

Misconceptions about the impact humans are having on the planet are widespread, according to the study by the Policy Institute at King’s College London.

Only a quarter of people quizzed by Ipsos Mori for the research correctly identified that all 20 of the world’s hottest years on record had occurred in the last 22 years.

Wildlife

On average, people guessed that 12 of the hottest years had occurred in that time, the figures show.

Members of the public also underestimate how much plastic waste has ended up in the environment, suggesting on average that just under half (49 percent) of the 6.3 billion tonnes of the material created globally has ended up in landfill or as litter – when the true figure is 79 percent.

Just nine percent has been recycled, far lower than the average estimate of 26 percent by people polled.

Only a third of the public correctly think that the population sizes of mammals, birds, fish and reptiles in the world has fallen by 60% since 1970, which is the estimate made by conservation organisations WWF and ZSL.

Half of people thought wildlife populations had fallen by 25 percent in that time.

Mis-perceptions

There were also misconceptions about where greenhouse gases are coming from, with those polled suggesting that 20% of pollution came from flying – compared to the real figure of two percent.

People also overestimated the role of recycling in reducing their carbon footprint, and underestimated the impact of avoiding one transatlantic flight.

And just 21 percent selected having one fewer child as a top way of cutting an individual’s greenhouse gas emissions, although it is the most significant thing that can be done, the research said.

Bobby Duffy, director of the Policy Institute at King’s College London and author of The Perils of Perception: Why We’re Wrong About Nearly Everything which is being published in paperback, said: “It is vital to understand public mis-perceptions about climate change and the natural environment – but not just so that we can bombard people with more information.”

Widespread

He said his book showed “we can’t just provide facts and expect people to hear them and act, regardless of how extraordinary those facts are”.

Prof Duffy also warned that there was not enough understanding about how fear, hope and a sense of the effectiveness of actions interacted in motivating people.

“But it’s just as naive to believe we know the right emotional buttons to push: we don’t understand enough about how fear, hope and a sense of efficacy interact in motivating action in different individuals.”

He added: “A little more understanding of the scale of the issues, the most effective actions we can take and just how normal and widespread concern has become couldn’t hurt.”

This Author

Emily Beament is the PA environment correspondent.

People underestimate how hot the world has become and how much plastic waste has ended up in the environment, research suggests.

Misconceptions about the impact humans are having on the planet are widespread, according to the study by the Policy Institute at King’s College London.

Only a quarter of people quizzed by Ipsos Mori for the research correctly identified that all 20 of the world’s hottest years on record had occurred in the last 22 years.

Wildlife

On average, people guessed that 12 of the hottest years had occurred in that time, the figures show.

Members of the public also underestimate how much plastic waste has ended up in the environment, suggesting on average that just under half (49 percent) of the 6.3 billion tonnes of the material created globally has ended up in landfill or as litter – when the true figure is 79 percent.

Just nine percent has been recycled, far lower than the average estimate of 26 percent by people polled.

Only a third of the public correctly think that the population sizes of mammals, birds, fish and reptiles in the world has fallen by 60% since 1970, which is the estimate made by conservation organisations WWF and ZSL.

Half of people thought wildlife populations had fallen by 25 percent in that time.

Mis-perceptions

There were also misconceptions about where greenhouse gases are coming from, with those polled suggesting that 20% of pollution came from flying – compared to the real figure of two percent.

People also overestimated the role of recycling in reducing their carbon footprint, and underestimated the impact of avoiding one transatlantic flight.

And just 21 percent selected having one fewer child as a top way of cutting an individual’s greenhouse gas emissions, although it is the most significant thing that can be done, the research said.

Bobby Duffy, director of the Policy Institute at King’s College London and author of The Perils of Perception: Why We’re Wrong About Nearly Everything which is being published in paperback, said: “It is vital to understand public mis-perceptions about climate change and the natural environment – but not just so that we can bombard people with more information.”

Widespread

He said his book showed “we can’t just provide facts and expect people to hear them and act, regardless of how extraordinary those facts are”.

Prof Duffy also warned that there was not enough understanding about how fear, hope and a sense of the effectiveness of actions interacted in motivating people.

“But it’s just as naive to believe we know the right emotional buttons to push: we don’t understand enough about how fear, hope and a sense of efficacy interact in motivating action in different individuals.”

He added: “A little more understanding of the scale of the issues, the most effective actions we can take and just how normal and widespread concern has become couldn’t hurt.”

This Author

Emily Beament is the PA environment correspondent.

Acres of lush underwater seagrass meadows are to be restored off the coast of Wales to help wildlife and tackle climate change, conservationists have said.

Sky Ocean Rescue, conservation organisation WWF and Swansea University are launching what they say is the biggest seagrass restoration project ever undertaken in the UK to help the habitat thrive again.

A million seeds of the “wonder plant” have been gathered from existing meadows in shallow, sheltered areas along the UK coasts, reached by volunteers snorkelling, diving and wading in to get them.

Crucial

They will be planted this winter over 4.9 acres (20,000 square metres) of Dale Bay in Pembrokeshire, which has lost its seagrass but is suitable for the plant’s return.

The organisations say the “cutting-edge” pilot could create a model which could pave the way for large-scale seagrass restoration throughout the UK, if it is supported by governments around the country.

The move follows the disappearance of up to 92% of the UK’s seagrass in the last century, caused by pollution, runoff from the land, coast development, and damage from boat propellers and chain moorings.

Seagrass meadows act as a nursery for a wide variety of marine life, from endangered seahorses to sea snails, and 2.5 acres (10,000 square metres) of seagrass can support 80,000 fish and 100 million invertebrates, the experts said.

It protects the coasts from erosion by absorbing wave energy, is a crucial habitat for many of important fish such as cod, plaice and pollock, produces oxygen, and helps clean the ocean by absorbing polluting nutrients.

Model

It also captures carbon from the atmosphere up to 35 times faster than tropical rainforests, making it an important part of tackling climate change.

Globally it accounts for 10 percent of annual ocean carbon storage despite only taking up 0.2% of the seafloor, the conservationists said.

Alec Taylor, WWF head of marine policy, said: “Seagrass is a wonder plant that doesn’t get the recognition it deserves, so its steep decline is extremely concerning.

“Without seagrass the myriad of amazing species that depend on it could disappear, the food we eat will be affected, and the amount of carbon in the environment will increase.

“Along with Sky Ocean Rescue and Swansea University, we are urgently calling on governments to use the model our project is creating to bring back these lush underwater meadows.

Livelihoods

“Governments also need to work with local communities to ensure that these vital areas are well-managed.”

Dr Richard Unsworth, of Swansea University, who is also director of the conservation charity Project Seagrass, said: “If we want to provide our fisheries and our coastlines with the potential to adapt to a rapidly changing climate, we need to restore the habitats and biodiversity that support their productivity.

“Providing a demonstration of the potential for restoration of our marine environment to be meaningful will hopefully act as a catalyst for further recovery of our UK seas.”

The seeds for the restoration scheme were collected from around the coasts by volunteers who snapped off the blades containing the seeds, which does not harm the plant, and taken to laboratories to be sorted and prepared.

They will be put in hessian bags to secure them when they are planted on the seabed this winter at the site, which has the right features in terms of the water depth and light levels to thrive there again.

The experts are working with local communities to design the project and choose the exact site so it does not affect local livelihoods and lifestyles.

It also aims to increase the understanding of the importance of seagrass and the benefits it can bring to the area, the organisations said.

This Author

Emily Beament is the PA environment correspondent.

Acres of lush underwater seagrass meadows are to be restored off the coast of Wales to help wildlife and tackle climate change, conservationists have said.

Sky Ocean Rescue, conservation organisation WWF and Swansea University are launching what they say is the biggest seagrass restoration project ever undertaken in the UK to help the habitat thrive again.

A million seeds of the “wonder plant” have been gathered from existing meadows in shallow, sheltered areas along the UK coasts, reached by volunteers snorkelling, diving and wading in to get them.

Crucial

They will be planted this winter over 4.9 acres (20,000 square metres) of Dale Bay in Pembrokeshire, which has lost its seagrass but is suitable for the plant’s return.

The organisations say the “cutting-edge” pilot could create a model which could pave the way for large-scale seagrass restoration throughout the UK, if it is supported by governments around the country.

The move follows the disappearance of up to 92% of the UK’s seagrass in the last century, caused by pollution, runoff from the land, coast development, and damage from boat propellers and chain moorings.

Seagrass meadows act as a nursery for a wide variety of marine life, from endangered seahorses to sea snails, and 2.5 acres (10,000 square metres) of seagrass can support 80,000 fish and 100 million invertebrates, the experts said.

It protects the coasts from erosion by absorbing wave energy, is a crucial habitat for many of important fish such as cod, plaice and pollock, produces oxygen, and helps clean the ocean by absorbing polluting nutrients.

Model

It also captures carbon from the atmosphere up to 35 times faster than tropical rainforests, making it an important part of tackling climate change.

Globally it accounts for 10 percent of annual ocean carbon storage despite only taking up 0.2% of the seafloor, the conservationists said.

Alec Taylor, WWF head of marine policy, said: “Seagrass is a wonder plant that doesn’t get the recognition it deserves, so its steep decline is extremely concerning.

“Without seagrass the myriad of amazing species that depend on it could disappear, the food we eat will be affected, and the amount of carbon in the environment will increase.

“Along with Sky Ocean Rescue and Swansea University, we are urgently calling on governments to use the model our project is creating to bring back these lush underwater meadows.

Livelihoods

“Governments also need to work with local communities to ensure that these vital areas are well-managed.”

Dr Richard Unsworth, of Swansea University, who is also director of the conservation charity Project Seagrass, said: “If we want to provide our fisheries and our coastlines with the potential to adapt to a rapidly changing climate, we need to restore the habitats and biodiversity that support their productivity.

“Providing a demonstration of the potential for restoration of our marine environment to be meaningful will hopefully act as a catalyst for further recovery of our UK seas.”

The seeds for the restoration scheme were collected from around the coasts by volunteers who snapped off the blades containing the seeds, which does not harm the plant, and taken to laboratories to be sorted and prepared.

They will be put in hessian bags to secure them when they are planted on the seabed this winter at the site, which has the right features in terms of the water depth and light levels to thrive there again.

The experts are working with local communities to design the project and choose the exact site so it does not affect local livelihoods and lifestyles.

It also aims to increase the understanding of the importance of seagrass and the benefits it can bring to the area, the organisations said.

This Author

Emily Beament is the PA environment correspondent.

Acres of lush underwater seagrass meadows are to be restored off the coast of Wales to help wildlife and tackle climate change, conservationists have said.

Sky Ocean Rescue, conservation organisation WWF and Swansea University are launching what they say is the biggest seagrass restoration project ever undertaken in the UK to help the habitat thrive again.

A million seeds of the “wonder plant” have been gathered from existing meadows in shallow, sheltered areas along the UK coasts, reached by volunteers snorkelling, diving and wading in to get them.

Crucial

They will be planted this winter over 4.9 acres (20,000 square metres) of Dale Bay in Pembrokeshire, which has lost its seagrass but is suitable for the plant’s return.

The organisations say the “cutting-edge” pilot could create a model which could pave the way for large-scale seagrass restoration throughout the UK, if it is supported by governments around the country.

The move follows the disappearance of up to 92% of the UK’s seagrass in the last century, caused by pollution, runoff from the land, coast development, and damage from boat propellers and chain moorings.

Seagrass meadows act as a nursery for a wide variety of marine life, from endangered seahorses to sea snails, and 2.5 acres (10,000 square metres) of seagrass can support 80,000 fish and 100 million invertebrates, the experts said.

It protects the coasts from erosion by absorbing wave energy, is a crucial habitat for many of important fish such as cod, plaice and pollock, produces oxygen, and helps clean the ocean by absorbing polluting nutrients.

Model

It also captures carbon from the atmosphere up to 35 times faster than tropical rainforests, making it an important part of tackling climate change.

Globally it accounts for 10 percent of annual ocean carbon storage despite only taking up 0.2% of the seafloor, the conservationists said.

Alec Taylor, WWF head of marine policy, said: “Seagrass is a wonder plant that doesn’t get the recognition it deserves, so its steep decline is extremely concerning.

“Without seagrass the myriad of amazing species that depend on it could disappear, the food we eat will be affected, and the amount of carbon in the environment will increase.

“Along with Sky Ocean Rescue and Swansea University, we are urgently calling on governments to use the model our project is creating to bring back these lush underwater meadows.

Livelihoods

“Governments also need to work with local communities to ensure that these vital areas are well-managed.”

Dr Richard Unsworth, of Swansea University, who is also director of the conservation charity Project Seagrass, said: “If we want to provide our fisheries and our coastlines with the potential to adapt to a rapidly changing climate, we need to restore the habitats and biodiversity that support their productivity.

“Providing a demonstration of the potential for restoration of our marine environment to be meaningful will hopefully act as a catalyst for further recovery of our UK seas.”

The seeds for the restoration scheme were collected from around the coasts by volunteers who snapped off the blades containing the seeds, which does not harm the plant, and taken to laboratories to be sorted and prepared.

They will be put in hessian bags to secure them when they are planted on the seabed this winter at the site, which has the right features in terms of the water depth and light levels to thrive there again.

The experts are working with local communities to design the project and choose the exact site so it does not affect local livelihoods and lifestyles.

It also aims to increase the understanding of the importance of seagrass and the benefits it can bring to the area, the organisations said.

This Author

Emily Beament is the PA environment correspondent.

As has now been widely reported, the Amazon rainforest is on fire due to a mixture of fires started for land clearance and the effects of climate change.

People start fires to clear out rainforest so as to use the land for other purposes, such as cattle ranching and farming. It’s a crime against the rainforest, but also against the indigenous people who live there and whose land it arguably is.

Destruction of the Amazon is not new – it’s been happening for decades. But this time the scale is different, with the fires are being furthered by a fascist government. However, it’s important to understand that the burning of the Amazon is not actually exceptional; it’s just a spectacular example of the normal way that humans dominate, plunder and destroy Nature all around the world.

Interconnection

As Capra and Mattei set out in their book The Ecology of Law, our politics, economics, law and culture have long been based on the idea that humans are the only thing that matter.

We see ourselves as separate from the rest of Nature, defining it as our environment instead of anything in its own right. Humans are the near-exclusive focus of our politics and economics, and when we measure success, we focus on reductionist metrics like GDP while ignoring anything like sustainability.

In our legal systems, the fundamental unit is the individual rights-bearer, based on an understanding of our society as made up of atomised individuals.

We do not recognise that in reality, human life and freedom is that of individual humans who are interconnected with each other and the world around us. Instead of atomised individuals, our law and general worldview should instead include the network of relationships within which we live.

Our environment provides us with the conditions to live, such as clean air and water, arable soil and temperatures suitable for human life. Even leaving aside the idea that Nature has moral value and is worthy of respect, our legal and economic systems fail to protect the conditions which we need to survive.

Natural capital

We view aspects of Nature as ‘natural resources’ or ‘natural capital’. Legally, they are just things which are ours for the taking, save for the occasional exception of a protected species or national park.

Land, ecosystems and animals all fall within the scope of property law, the starting point of which is finders keepers. Anything in existence is a res nullius, unowned until the first person claims it.

This finders keepers approach to owning Nature it isn’t just about humans dominating Nature; it’s also humans dominating other humans. Indigenous people, many of whom have long lived in harmony with Nature, have been and continue to be forced off their land in the Amazon and the world over.

Ownership is near-absolute. The object, whether it’s your bike or a forest, has no rights of its own, and the owner can essentially treat it however they see fit. Rainforests do not have any right to exist, any right to be left alone to simply be rainforests. Landowners do not have any significant responsibilities to the land, to the rest of Nature, or to other people: the land is yours to do as you wish with.

When our international legal system developed during the colonial period, it distinguished between civilised nations and barbarians. Civilised nations arrived in places where ‘uncivilised’ people lived and claimed the land of indigenous people who lived there, justifying that it was for their benefit, that they weren’t fit to own things, and that they didn’t even have a system of ownership anyway, and therefore it was unowned property ready to be claimed by a coloniser.

Ownership

Our legal systems and approach to ownership were forced upon indigenous people as we colonised the world, and these land grabs continue to happen.

Ownership, the idea that a rich individual, a corporation or even a nation state can own land, is never really justified. It’s just treated as a fact of life, something which liberal philosophers deduced as being morally justified and a fundamental human right simply because they saw people do it. While there are some limitations, such as environmental regulations and the need for planning permission, these still come from the starting point of humans owning Nature and take little account of safe ecological limits; legally, Nature does not have rights to protect itself.

As the Supreme Court recognised in allowing an individual person to challenge a Government decision out of concern for the natural environment, ‘the osprey has no means of taking this step itself’, ruling that an individual person could bring a judicial review out of concern for the natural environment.

The burning of the Amazon is not exceptional; humans have been plundering, subjecting and abusing land throughout the whole modern period, with activities like deforestation, mining and repurposing huge swathes of land for human agriculture entirely normal.

This is killing us.

Ecological destruction 

The notion that we share this planet with the rest of Nature, or even that we ought, perhaps, to limit the scale of ecological destruction such that human life on this planet can be sustained, is entirely absent. The relationship between humans and the rest of Nature is one of subjugation, domination and plunder, when we need it to be one of harmony and regeneration.

Over the last century there has been paradigm shift in many scientific domains, described by Capra and Mattei as “from seeing the world as a machine to understanding it as a network… from a mechanistic to a holistic and ecological worldview.”

While the body is now understood as a whole system, and we recognise that ecosystems are interconnected and that there are planetary systems which sustain life, our law, economics and politics lag far behind.

For human life to survive, this needs urgently addressing; our law, economics and politics should protect the conditions for continued human life on this planet.

There are emerging movements which have recognised this. Kate Raworth’s Doughnut Economics is an approach to economics which places human activity within planetary boundaries, and the UN’s Harmony with Nature programme recognises ‘a need to devise a more sustainable model for production, consumption and the economy as a whole’ which is ‘based on a non-anthropocentric relationship with Nature’.

Earth jurisprudence

In legal thinking, Earth Jurisprudence and the Rights for Nature movement, which this article is based on, have long recognised the need to change our legal systems to ensure a harmonious relationship with Nature. It argues that Nature should be given legal protection with rights, spoken for via human representatives, to be able to exist, persist and regenerate their vital cycles.

This would include a new form of “ownership” which we don’t yet have the language for, in which Nature would effectively own itself, and law would ensure that the relationship between humans and the rest of Nature is just.

This thinking has received some traction around the world, with some rivers (and their ecosystems) being given legal status, and a handful of Latin American countries giving recognition to rights of nature, such as in Ecuador’s constitution or the Bolivian legal system.

Yet there’s a long way to go with raising awareness of these ideas, overcoming the inertia of persuading people of the need for a radically different approach, and then transitioning to legal systems which are based on interconnection and ecological principles.

Our response to the burning of the Amazon cannot simply be about protecting the Amazon from being torched under a fascist regime. Instead, we must recognise that it is just the norm within our legal and economic systems, and that these need addressing urgently.

Humans should be legally required to live sustainably, in the same way that States, Governments and public bodies (though not corporations) are required to respect human rights in all they do. We should do this not because of some hippy idea of loving nature, much as I do, but because our survival depends on it.

This Author 

Alex May is a writer, activist and legal theorist who works in politics. He has undergraduate and master’s law degrees, researching what our legal system should look like and the shift to a relational approach to law. This article was first published on OpenDemocracy.