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Resolution 16: Recognition of the rights of nature in the Mexican constitution and in that of all other nation states /Reconocimiento de los Derechos de la Naturaleza en todas las Naciones

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WHEREAS:

Protection of wilderness and natural resources is the responsibility of all the citizens of the world;

REMEMBERING that the Plenary Meeting of the United Nations General Assembly on October 28, 1982 approved the World Charter for Nature, which in its General Principle number 1 states that: “Nature should be respected and its essential processes shall not be impaired”; this applies to its existence, the maintenance and regeneration of its vital cycles, structure, function and evolutionary processes.

INSPIRED by the example given to the world community by the country of Ecuador, in South America: the land of Galapagos, where on April 10, 2008 the Asamblea Constituyente by a vast majority voted yes, for the approval of a modification of Articles 71 to 74 Ecuador’s Constitution, hence recognizing the rights of nature;

ASSURED that citizens of the world should take a more proactive position, supporting their representatives when appropriate, but not expecting their governments to take all the responsibility of leadership;

THEREFORE:

In Wild 9 the need to transmit to the world, the urgency to protect nature in new, original more effective ways that can overcome doing more of the same, was consistently expressed.

The 9th World Wilderness Congress in the words of Jane Goodall, expressed the potential and encourages all people to understand and promote that science is changing to accept that not only humans have feelings, emotions and rights;

That human society from the perspective of deep ecology is not the owner of nature, but part of it;

WILD 9 RESOLVED:

1. That the Earth does not belong to humanity but humanity is part of life on Earth;

2. Nature traditionally has been considered as an object, subject to legal exploitation, ought to be perceived and recognized as a subject – not only an object – of rights.

3. People and human communities of the planet are the trustees of nature where wilderness, biodiversity, biomes and ecosystem form part of the trust. Trustees of nature are obliged to honor it and protect it, which will only fully happen, when humanity recognizes the rights of nature.

4. In order to recognize these rights, we must set aside, and protect spaces in this world for wilderness.

5. WILD 9 invites all multilateral institutions, national governments, multinational corporations and organizations of civil society to explicitly recognize that nature is a subject of rights, and to do all that is within their reach to have nature rights recognized, communicated and respected.

6. WILD 9 encourages all nations state governments to recognize the Rights of nature in their Constitution.

7. In consistency with his words of hope in the inauguration of the Congress WILD 9 invites the President of Mexico, His Excellency Felipe Calderon, to immediately promote within its government and the appropriate institutions this initiative.

Proposer: Fernendo Ortiz Monasterio, Delegate, President of the Conservation and Restoration Committee of PRONATURA, Mexico.

Seconders:

Bittu Sahgal Delegate, Fonder and Editor of Sanctuary Asia.

Terry Tanner, Delegate, American Indian Ambassador Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribal Representative

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