David R. Boyd: A river becomes a legal entity

Whanganui River in New Zealand (reprophoto).

This excerpt from Canadian lawyer and activist David R. Boyd's book The Rights of Nature: A Legal Revolution that Could Save the World (ECW Press, Toronto 2017, pp. 131-143 / translated and edited by Jiří Zemánek) – in which the author describes the emergence of the contemporary nature rights movement – depicts the deep relationship of the Maori people to the Whanganui River and their dispute with the British…

David R. Boyd: Te Urewera, the ecosystem formerly known as a national park

Te Urewera (reprophoto)

David R. Boyd is a Canadian lawyer, activist, and diplomat who is the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights and the environment. In his influential book The Rights of Nature: A Legal Revolution that Could Save the World (ECW Press, Toronto 2017), a “real-life legal thriller” (D.…