This commentary is by Bill Greenwald, a resident of Pownal.
The climate crisis and its various effects have been force-fed to the world for decades, often including the same nerve-wracking statistics of increased greenhouse gas emissions, especially CO2, melting of glaciers, decreased biodiversity and desertification right around the corner.
The solutions, too, have largely remained the same: reduce, reuse and recycle, drive less, eat less or no animal products and buy local for as many goods as feasible.
Environmentally conscious policies in the United States exist, but can be circumnavigated with connections and finance to a certain degree, but have had some success. Even in Vermont, a state that touts itself as sustainable and eco-friendly, has had issues with Lake Champlain’s and the Winooski River’s water quality, and a FedEx building in what was once a wetland behind the scenic Whale Tales on Interstate 89.
Perhaps it is finally time to take an ancient worldview and codify it in Vermont’s Constitution. This ancient perspective is how the Natural World is viewed in relation to the humans who live on, and because of, it: as an intricate web of living beings that deserve to be recognized as the lifeblood of the planet.
Indigenous people the world over recognized this fact millennia ago, but centuries of history have since commodified nature.
The contemporary version for this view is the Rights of Nature, and recognition of these rights has begun the world over. Rights of Nature, in its simplest terms, is the act of allowing nature itself to be party in a lawsuit and merely represented by an attorney, if it is wronged. “Wronged” does not simply mean a tree was cut down, or minor damage incurred, but that some aspect of the Natural World will be damaged enough so the local ecosystem is incapable of continuing its present state of existence.
In essence, Nature will have the title of personhood bestowed upon it.
Rights of Nature were recognized by the native Abenaki tribe, and a symbiotic relationship was taught in their, and many other, Indigenous religions, which can often be equated to laws.
It took until 2006 until any government entity in the world would recognize these same rights in the Western lexicon of laws. Tamaqua, Pennsylvania, a small town once heavily involved in coal mining, was targeted by hospital and industry waste dumps. These dumps included human and chemical wastes, and farmers in the area were encouraged to spray this waste mixture on crops as fertilizer.
Tamaqua’s response: A citizen-led movement resulting in the passing of Ordinance 612, containing this amazing clause: “Borough residents, natural communities and ecosystems shall be considered ‘persons’ for purposes of the enforcement of the civil rights of those residents, natural communities, and ecosystems.”
Vermont may not have the dramatic and scandalous waste-dumping Tamaqua saw to unite behind, but Vermonters on both sides of the political spectrum tend to believe climate change, and Vermont has the economic interest to protect nature as well. 74% of the state’s population believe that climate change is real, 58% believe climate change will have a major impact (an additional 21% expect a minor impact) on life in Vermont in the next three decades.
The political skew in Vermont may play a role in these figures, as 57% of residents are Democrats, but caring about the environment is a belief entrenched in being a Vermonter, not subscribing to a political party to the point of blindness.
Vermont is home to over 6,000 farms, which generated over $700 million in 2020, and outdoor activities such as fishing, hunting, hiking and water sports (as well as lodging and dining) accounted for $3 billion in annual spending.
Rights of Nature policy would ensure sustainable farming, protection for forests from degradation, and force a more substantial cleanup of Lake Champlain and other bodies of water.
Rights of Nature is not a policy that would pass into law if presented to the legation during this session, or even the next few sessions, but it is a necessary paradigm shift for the survival of humans and nature alike. Every person who reads this article and discusses its contents pushes the movement one step closer into Vermont’s Vonstitution, setting precedent for other states to follow suit.
The only way for such a different view of the natural world to be adopted is by getting the message out to the largest group possible. So, spread the word, talk to friends, coworkers, strangers on the street or on the trail, any and everyone who will listen to why Nature deserves its rights.
