On April 30 at 2:00 PM, a conference dedicated to the Rights of Nature will be held at the National Assembly under the patronage of President Yaël Braun-Pivet. Organized by Charles Fournier, Member of Parliament for Indre-et-Loire, this event will bring together citizen collectives, legal experts, researchers, and policymakers committed to the legal recognition of ecosystems. The Institute for Advanced Studies in Nantes is proud to join this event and thanks Charles Fournier for the invitation to participate in these discussions.
In response to a growing demand from local communities to recognize nature, rivers, and living environments as legal entities, this conference will highlight grassroots mobilizations and ongoing initiatives. For the past two years, alongside Camille de Toledo, an associate member of the Institute, as well as 12 citizens from Nantes and its region and numerous researchers, we have been exploring the possibility of extending the Rights of Nature in the 21st century and transitioning toward an Earth-centered political economy.
Among the participants, the Tours-based collective Towards a Parliament of the Loire has formed a commission of experts and researchers working toward the recognition of the Loire River as a living entity. Other collectives, including those from Corsica and the Lez River, along with French and European political and legal actors, will share their experiences and perspectives during this day dedicated to cooperation and collective action.
This conference at the National Assembly is part of the ongoing project Towards an International of Rivers..., led by the Institute in partnership with Le Lieu Unique and Notre Affaire à Tous, with the support of Nantes Métropole.
The program will be available soon.
You can attend the conference by registering at this link.
