The Rights of Nature is a movement whose time has come. The Global Alliance on the Rights of Nature catalogues the many examples around the world where communities are fighting to have nature’s rights enshrined in law.
Canada is emerging as a leader in the Rights of Rivers movement – an exciting subset of the larger endeavour. It is led by Indigenous communities who take seriously their role as protectors of water. The mighty Magpie River in northern Quebec was the first but not likely to be the last river in Canada to be granted legal status. First Nations and other communities along the St. Lawrence River are working to the same goal, as are the Dene of the Mackenzie River in the NWT.
Here is a story about a similar campaign to grant legal rights to the Gatineau River in western Quebec.
