Periodic Reporting for period 1 - Speak4Nature (Speak for Nature: Interdisciplinary Approaches on Ecological Justice)
Période du rapport: 2023-03-01 au 2025-02-28
"Speak4Nature" addresses the urgent challenges posed by anthropogenic global changes and the impact of human activities on nature. The project aims to reassess knowledge and practices in social sciences and civil awareness, enhancing our understanding of humanity's relationship with Nature. It focuses on "ecological justice" (EJ), viewing nature as an active participant deserving of justice and highlighting the interdependence of human and non-human communities. Despite various environmental policies, there's a gap in the ethical foundations of EJ, often neglected by traditional justice concepts. "Speak4Nature" seeks to bridge these gaps through a multidisciplinary and international collaborative network, emphasizing both theoretical and empirical research on non-human nature's representation and innovative socio-legal strategies. The project's objectives include conceptualizing EJ from a broad perspective, exploring how social sciences extend moral consideration to non-human nature, mapping legal techniques advocating for non-human voices, empowering civil society in ecological awareness, and ensuring effective communication of outcomes through a comprehensive White Book on EJ and multilingual training resources. These efforts aim to enhance the representation of non-human nature and promote ecological awareness.
The consortium has summarized its findings on ecological justice from the first two years of research into four key theoretical deliverables: 1. The Theory of Justice Addressing Ecological Challenges, 2. The Theory of Law and Ecological Justice, 3. Human Rights and Ecological Justice, and 4. Theoretical Standards of Ecological Justice. Additionally, two deliverables focus on empirical aspects: 1. The Political Framework of Nature’s Representation and 2. Legal Procedural Techniques in Ecological Justice. These outputs incorporate insights from meetings, seminars, and workshops. During the initial phase, critical ecological challenges such as energy consumption and climate change were addressed, which clarified debates in ecological ethics. Three strategies for valuing nature were identified, with the concept of agency deemed the most suitable approach. The research distinguished various justice paradigms and advocated for an ecosocial justice framework. In the next phase, the emphasis was on integrating non-human entities into legal theories, supporting the development of an ecological theory of law that considers subjective rights. Throughout this part of the research, the consortium examined the relationship between justice theories and law, pushing for a more inclusive approach to accommodate ecological issues. Additionally, Speak4Nature explored the complexities of linking human rights with the rights of non-human beings and ecosystems. This led to the proposal of 'transsubjective' rights and an examination of biocultural rights from an ecosocial perspective, which included an analysis of recent case law trends in human rights courts. Lastly, the Compendium on Theoretical Standards of Ecological Justice, the final output of the theoretical research, offers a comprehensive framework for the consortium. It aims to establish a common language for ecological justice and serves as a reference tool, providing entries that describe key concepts in ecological justice. The entries are organized into categories such as political science, law, and philosophy.
Speak4Nature has made significant strides in the field of ecological ethics by clarifying debates around nature’s intrinsic value versus anthropocentrism and emphasizing the need to incorporate non-human entities into moral and legal frameworks. By proposing an ecological theory of law that intertwines subjective rights with environmental considerations, the research advocates for recognizing the inherent interests and/or rights of non-human entities and promotes an ecosocial justice framework that informs equitable resource distribution and environmental governance. These findings have the potential to influence legislation and conservation efforts, encouraging broader acceptance of “eco-social” rights and inspiring legal reforms that protect both human and non-human interests. Additionally, the creation of a comprehensive framework for ecological justice serves as a vital resource for stakeholders, facilitating collaboration and promoting a unified approach to addressing ecological disparities, ultimately fostering a more sustainable relationship between humanity and the natural world.