Paul Powlesland on Nature Rights, Nature Guardianship and System Change - E202
Jan 25, 2024
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Paul Powlesland, a barrister and lawyer for nature, discusses nature guardianship, activism, and challenges in caring for land and rivers. He explores 'Nature Rights' and an ecosystem of interventions to change human-nature relationships. The podcast emphasizes the importance of personal connections with nature and becoming guardians to protect and restore it.
Changing the fundamental relationship between humans and nature can have a greater systemic impact than treating symptoms.
Transforming the legal, social, economic, and religious/spiritual systems is necessary to align with nature and its rights.
Personal connection with nature and acting as guardians can empower individuals to protect and enrich the environment.
Deep dives
Changing the Relationship Between Humans and Nature
The podcast episode emphasizes the need to change the way humans and the systems they've created relate to nature. It argues for considering nature's own interests and life in creating laws and taking actions. Rather than treating symptoms, changing the fundamental relationship between humans and the natural world can have a greater systemic impact.
Rights of Nature and System Change
The episode explores the concept of rights of nature and the need to transform the legal, social, economic, and religious/spiritual systems to align with nature. It discusses the ecosystem of interventions necessary to address the underlying crisis of the disconnect between humans and nature. It highlights the importance of holistic approaches and the role of individuals in advocating for nature's rights.
Guardianship and Activism for Nature
The podcast episode speaks to the idea of guardianship and the importance of personal connection with nature. It suggests that individuals can take responsibility and act as guardians to protect and enrich nature. It encourages people to get involved in monitoring, activism, legal actions, and restoration efforts to make a difference in their local areas.
Shifting from Ownership to Guardianship
The podcast episode discusses the concept of shifting from ownership to guardianship, particularly in relation to land. The idea is to reduce the power of landowners to destroy nature, while increasing the power and ability of people who don't own land to restore and protect it. The speaker shares their personal experience of living on a boat and setting up a project to restore a neglected river. They emphasize the importance of granting more people the power to restore, protect, and connect with nature even on land they don't own.
Giving Rivers Legal Personality and Rights
The episode highlights the need to change the source code of the legal system to give rivers legal personality and rights. Currently, rivers have no representation or say in the system, while companies like water utilities have extensive power over them. By granting rivers legal personality, they can have a voice and protections. The speaker suggests that fines collected from environmental offenses committed against rivers could be used to fund guardians who would advocate for the river's interests. This change in source code would enable a systemic shift toward ensuring the protection and well-being of nature.
How do we align the law and ourselves with nature to enrich life?
In this episode entitled Future Source Code Amisha talks with Paul Powlesland, a barrister and lawyer for nature who acts to protect trees and rivers in the courts and speaks for the Rights of Nature. He is a founder of Lawyers for Nature, which aims to transform the relationship between law, lawyers and nature, introducing nature’s voice into our legal and economic systems. Paul lives on a boat on the River Roding in East London, and set up the River Roding Trust, through which he carries out hands-on restoration, guardianship and protection of the river.
We explore
:: Nature guardianship, activism and the challenges of caring for our land and rivers
:: Future Source Code for ‘Nature Rights’ reflecting a relationship of protection and care between humans and nature in our legal systems
:: an ecosystem of interventions that changes the relationship between humans and nature across our legal, social, economic and religious spiritual systems
