In a remarkable stride against climate change, Panama, nestled in the Caribbean, has joined hands with other nations to pioneer a legal movement conferring special legal rights to the natural world — lands, trees, rivers, coral reefs, and mountains, akin to human rights.
President Laurentino Cortizo of Panama signed a groundbreaking legislation on August 24th, defining nature as “a unique, indivisible, and self-regulating community of living beings, elements, and ecosystems interrelated to one another that sustains, contains, and reproduces all beings.” This transformative step comes after less than a year of deliberation in the National Assembly.
Amidst the alarming loss of humid tropical forests — with around 194,000 acres lost between 2002 and 2020 — Panama’s new stance is crucial. The country’s recognition of nature’s legal rights aligns it with other nations like Bolivia, New Zealand, Bangladesh, Ecuador, Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico, all of which have taken steps to elevate the status of nature.
The legislation outlines six distinct rights extended to nature, including the “right to exist, persist, and regenerate its life cycles,” the “right to conserve its biodiversity,” and the “right to be restored after being affected by any human activity.”
Moreover, the legislation places newfound responsibilities on the Panamanian government. This includes crafting manufacturing and energy regulations that safeguard ecosystems, prioritizing nature’s rights in foreign policy, and fostering economic opportunities for sustainable development and nature-based tourism, as witnessed in Costa Rica.
In this journey, indigenous communities play a significant role. The law emphasizes incorporating their ancestral knowledge in interpreting and implementing these rights, recognizing the deep connection between nature’s rights and their cultural beliefs.
Panama, home to vast tropical rainforests and mangroves teeming with diverse plant and animal species, including the elusive jaguars and the spectacled bear, is at a crossroads. While development and mining pose threats, this groundbreaking legislation signals a commitment to safeguarding its precious biodiversity and promoting a sustainable future.
With this historic move, Panama takes a giant leap towards a harmonious coexistence with the natural world, a crucial step in the global fight against climate change.