Public Support and Challenges in Recognizing the Rights of Nature: A European Perspective

The debate surrounding the recognition of the Rights of Nature has gained global prominence, providing a legal and ethical approach that fundamentally reshapes societal perspectives on their connection with the natural world. This paper explores the challenges of aligning the Rights of Nature with European societal values, highlighting how conventional Western legal systems and cultural attitudes have limited public support for Rights of Nature initiatives. The Rights of Nature (RoN) grants natural entities—such as rivers, forests, and ecosystems—inherent rights, akin to human rights, to exist and thrive independently of human use or exploitation. This perspective, deeply rooted in ecocentric values and often influenced by Indigenous worldviews, diverges sharply from the anthropocentric frameworks that have historically shaped European legal and environmental policies (Kauffman & Martin, 2017). Influential milestones, such as Ecuador’s 2008 Constitution and New Zealand’s 2017 Te Awa Tupua Act, have set significant precedents for RoN by recognizing ecosystems and natural entities as legal persons, affirming their intrinsic right to exist and regenerate without serving solely human interests (New Zealand Parliament, 2017; Constitution of Ecuador, 2008). However, these advances stand in contrast to Europe’s generally anthropocentric legal and cultural perspectives, which frame environmental protection as a means to safeguard human interests. The following section provides an overview of the global RoN movement, underscoring its ecocentric and animistic roots, which emphasize nature’s intrinsic value and agency beyond human utility. A closer look at Europe in section three reveals specific cultural, legal, and political barriers that hinder public support for RoN, including societal unfamiliarity with ecocentric ideals and an ongoing resistance to legal frameworks that prioritize nature's rights. This foundation helps illustrate why Rights of Nature remains an unfamiliar and often controversial concept in Europe, where environmental legislation predominantly supports human welfare and economic growth rather than advocating for nature's independent rights (de Lucia, 2015). The challenges faced by public advocacy for Rights of Nature in Europe are examined in section four through the case of the Mar Menor Lagoon in southeastern Spain. This coastal lagoon, severely impacted by agricultural runoff and nutrient pollution, sparked public campaigns and regional support for its protection. Yet, despite these efforts, proposals to establish the lagoon’s legal personhood encountered substantial resistance. Opposition stemmed from concerns over economic interests, political inertia, and a general lack of societal awareness regarding RoN concepts (García Ruales, Hovden, Kopnina, Robertson & Schoukens, 2023; Guaita-García, Martínez-Fernández, Barrera-Causil, & Fitz, 2022). In the fifth section, this paper advocates for a bottom-up, community-led approach to RoN in Europe, emphasizing the importance of decentralized solutions and public engagement as pathways to overcoming resistance. By fostering local awareness and encouraging grassroots movements, Europe may be better positioned to adopt Rights of Nature frameworks that reflect both ecological needs and societal values. Through this analysis, the paper seeks to provide insights into the interplay between cultural ideologies, legal frameworks, and public perceptions that influence RoN's potential to reshape Europe’s approach to environmental protection

Keeping the human in the loop: Are autonomous decisions inevitable?

Control rooms play a crucial role in monitoring and managing safety-critical systems, such as power grids, emergency response, and transportation networks. As these systems become increasingly complex and generate more data, the role of human operators is evolving amid growing reliance on automation and autonomous decision-making. This paper explores the balance between leveraging automation for efficiency and preserving human intuition and ethical judgment, particularly in high-stakes scenarios. Through an analysis of control room trends, operator attitudes, and models of human-computer collaboration, this paper highlights the benefits and challenges of automation, including risks of deskilling, automation bias, and accountability. The paper advocates for a hybrid approach of collaborative autonomy, where humans and systems work in partnership to ensure transparency, trust, and adaptability

Granting Rights to Naturals Objects: The Future of Environmental Protection or Cultural Mismatch?

Conclusion: To conclude, there is no doubt that humanity is currently facing a (man-made) climate crisis. Ecosystems are under increasing pressure and are changing rapidly (IPCC, 2023). Europe has a very extensive network of environmental laws and regulations that attempt to counteract climate change. However, it can be observed that these are not sufficient to solve today's environmental problems. Europeans show a high level of environmental awareness and dissatisfaction with current environmental policy. The insufficiency of environmental policies coupled with high environmental awareness in Europe is calling for a new approach to environmental protection. The answer may lie in civic society: This article has demonstrated that Europe has a stable culture of committed citizens who fulfil their democratic responsibilities. Citizen movements have started to take inspiration from the Latin American examples and mobilize around granting rights to nature. The Rights of Nature initiatives that have emerged in Europe and the case of Mar Menor show that the concept of the rights of nature also fits into our European context and receives support. These actors already have influence as norm entrepreneurs: The study from Ireland shows that transnational networks such as The Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund are important norm champions for greater diffusion and effectiveness. The overarching goal is effective environmental protection, and from the above arguments it can be concluded that European civil society is dynamic, flexible and motivated to take the next step with more room for action to achieve direct environmental justice

Is Europe Ready to Embrace the Recognition of Nature’s Rights?

[AI generated:] This paper examines the development of arguments in favor of recognizing the rights of nature, particularly in the context of recent global social demonstrations supporting this paradigm shift. Despite the initial advantages associated with adopting this position, various theoretical and practical obstacles emerged during the argument compilation process. To ensure a clear and convincing argumentation, the position was divided into four key points. First, the legal possibility of this recognition is discussed from various philosophical theories. Next, the central role of NGOs and other environmental groups is highlighted. The third argument considers the practical perspective of judicial representation and general principles of law. Finally, an economic argument is presented that brings together the main concerns of many states in support of this paradigm shift. The arguments were developed with consideration of the key criticisms from the opposition, aiming not only to counter these questions but primarily to strengthen the position

Reflection of mind on body

Through jewelry, I aim to raise awareness of psychosomatic disorders conditions many silently endure. Jewelry, as a personal and tangible medium, interacts directly with the body, making it a powerful channel for expressing inner emotional wounds in a visible and intimate form. Inspired by psychologists such as Gabor Maté, Alice Miller, and Joyce McDougall who emphasize the deep connection between emotional experiences and the body my work seeks to spark honest and meaningful conversations about mental health and also drawing on the theories of Tilmann Habermas and Donald Winnicott, I explore how objects can embody vulnerability rooted in childhood. Jewelry, like a childhood doll, can act as a transitional object, worn close to the body, symbolizing connection, memory, and emotional support. Jewelry is more than physical adornment. It holds psychological and emotional weight, reflecting our inner states. Jewelry, in particular, shows how adornment can mirror mental and emotional realities. These objects are not only wearable but also speak on behalf of important issues such as mental health, making them both intimate and socially resonant. According to my research about psychosomatic problems, repressed emotions from childhood remain stored within the body. A child who feels hurt, ignored, or abandoned may find those realities too overwhelming to face, and in response, constructs a fantasy world to emotionally survive. To represent this imagined world, I create jewelry with playful, illusory, and childlike forms. However, their rough, organic textures made from bio-based materials hint at the hidden pain beneath the surface. These works expose how childhood coping mechanisms quietly persist into adulthood. To express the lingering impact of unresolved childhood experiences, I use incomplete forms and contrasting elements to evoke fragility. For me, incompleteness symbolizes wounds that never fully heal, continuing to shape our emotional lives. In some pieces, I incorporate heavy stones to represent the burden of unresolved psychological struggles and the weight of pressure that cannot easily be escaped. These works illustrate the emotional labor of confronting our past and emphasize the importance of selfawareness and healing. In my practice, I developed my bio-based materials with tactile textures sometimes harsh, raspy, and even unsettling that gradually evolved into a durable and waterproof form suitable for wearing on the body. These materials, along with irregular shapes and tension-filled contrasts in size, color, and form, visually express anxiety, inner conflict, and emotional pressure. Inspired by red AIDS ribbon, a small, simple symbol that raised global awareness, reduced stigma, and sparked compassion. It was powerful precisely because it had no author, no profit motive it was universal. Inspired by this concept, I created a series of simple brooches priced at 10 euros each, with the intention of producing many more. They are symbols of resilience and hope, designed to be accessible and to start conversations. Changing society is a big idea, but real change begins with individuals. If just one person is moved or transformed by wearing or encountering one of these pieces, then the work has succeeded. My goal is that each piece serves empathy, mindfulness, dialogue and creat awareness

Foundations for a theory of radical legal eco-innovation: the paradigm of Rights of Nature

The theory of legal eco-innovation elucidates and streamlines the processes by which innovative legal actions contribute to driving the necessary transition towards sustainability. The goal of the present study is to understand the need, the processes and the conditions for the legal acceptability of radical legal eco-innovation, taking RoN as an example. In practice this means that the legal fiction of Rights of Nature should not be interpreted as an exoteric proposal of eccentric lawyers but rather as a wise and coherent legal eco-innovation initiative with a strong effectiveness potential in the European framework

Panel Discussion on Democracy, Rights of Nature and Social Norm Dynamics

This report summarizes the arguments presented by Prof. Dr. Milena Valeva during the second panel discussion, which was held in preparation for the planned simulated parliamentary debate of the students. The experts, Prof. Dr. Alexandra Aragão and Prof. Dr. Milena Valeva, shared their insights from the fields of political theory, environmental ethics, and human rights on the topic of Democracy, Rights of Nature (RoN) and social norm dynamics. The basis for Valeva’s arguments was provided by the central claim of Aragão to emphasize the role of Environmental Pragmatism, which rejects the notion that effective environmental action requires a radical transformation of human value systems or adherence to one ultimate ethical principle. Instead, it promotes open-ended inquiry and adaptive democratic decision-making to navigate complex, real-world ecological challenges. The Paris Agreement, which employs a bottom-up and iterative approach, favoring flexible “pledge and review” systems, is celebrated as an embodiment of pragmatic climate diplomacy that fosters ambition through mutual accountability and continuous reassessment. To further deliberate on this central claim, Valeva elaborated on the following two central questions, which refer to her paper titled “From Human Dignity and Human Rights to Sustainability within the Context of Democracy," published in Interdisciplinary Perspectives on the Interplay between Human Rights and Sustainability (Special Issue 2/2024). * What are the limits of liberal democracy in dealing with sustainability and RoN? * What is the potential of republican democracy for executing sustainability and RoN

Anthropocentrism – an Obstacle to the Protection of Nature

During the last decades, several actions have been carried out to try to reduce and even stop the repercussions of climate change, such as the creation of politics, laws, treaties and diverse mechanisms of action to ensure the care and protection of nature, however, such measures have not been enough to reduce the diverse types of impacts that the planetary ecosystem suffers. Throughout this section, the integration of the ecocentric vision in the Law will be developed, with the main objective of recognizing the inherent rights of nature in Europe. This will be achieved through the use of existing legal and juridical figures, with special emphasis on Latin American latitudes, with the purpose of incorporating this modern advance of law in the European normative framework

Legal Fetishism in Times of Polycrisis

Conclusion: Law is, and will ever be, a human (a societal) construct. As such, its instruments will always, tably, require human mediation. Given the seemly unstoppable acceleration of the ecological crisis, it is plausible that innovative proposals start to challenge the human-nature dualism enshrined in Law. Nevertheless, in doing so, some proposals risk fetishizing concepts, being merely performative without demonstrating real capacity to challenge the dualistic structure of the legal order. In fact, rights are a markedly humanistic juridical figure; therefore, transplanting them to non-human subjects generates a series of dogmatic problems, while reproducing the same individualistic worldview. The RoN are congenitally divisive and reductionist, forcing an unnatural enclosure of ecological systems in contained units and putting them in competition with other (human) rights. This is precisely what should be avoided if we take the present predicament seriously. The focus of an authentically transformative legal theory should not be to extend the legal realm to colonize nature. On the contrary, the focus should be on integrating ecological dynamics into the legal order. Instead of giving rights to nature, we should be attributing humans stringent obligations towards nature. If the goal is to affect human behavior, which is the source of the immense devastation unraveling, then the reasonable way forward is to act on human behavior. It is the Law that must “ecologize”, not the other way around

Impact of Geometry on Chemical Analysis Exemplified for Photoelectron Spectroscopy of Black Silicon

For smooth surfaces, chemical composition can be readily analyzed using various spectroscopic techniques, a prominent example is X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), where the relative proportions of the elements are mainly determined by the intensity ratio of the element-specific photoelectrons. However, this analysis becomes more complex for nanorough surfaces like black silicon (b-Si) due to the geometry's steep slopes, which mimic local variations in emission angles. In this study, this effect is explicitly quantified through an integral geometric analysis using Minkowski tensors, correlating XPS chemical data with topographical information from Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM). This approach yields reliable estimates of layer thicknesses for nanorough surfaces. For b-Si, it is found that the oxide layer is ≈50%–80% thicker than the native oxide layer on a standard Si wafer. This study underscores the significant impact of nanoscale geometries on chemical property analysis