Bolivia's Law of Mother Earth

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Published on Mon, Apr 18,2011 | 12:27, Updated at Tue, Apr 19 at 17:10Source : CNBC-TV18 |   Watch Video :

Welcome back to what I think is a fascinating story – or maybe even a movement across the world – one that gives nature rights equal to human beings. Ecuador was the first country in the world to recognise the legal rights of Mother Nature in its constitution.

Then last year the people’s world conference on climate change and the rights of mother earth, held in Bolivia, adopted a universal declaration of the rights of Mother Earth. Now Bolivia is the first to translate these rights into law – the law of Mother Earth. But what does it mean to give nature legal rights? Nature can hardly defend herself in a court of law! Cormack Cullinan, an environmental lawyer, closely associated with the universal declaration, talks to CNBC-TV18's Menaka Doshi on the matter.