The UK Rights of Nature Network
Supporting the representation of nature in legal and governance systems throughout the UK
We are an interdisciplinary network of practitioners, artists, lawyers, academics, writers and activists working together to catalyse and further the field of Rights of Nature in the UK. Our vision is a world where the rights and representation of the more-than-human world becomes a part of legal, governance and decision-making systems.
The Network is organised in a mycelial way, meeting periodically to share information across and within the more-than-human rights, governance and representation fields. We platform individuals’ contributions while cohering a larger community of practice, action and knowledge. Like the mycelium, our hope is to build a rich and diverse ecosystem with a range of strategies, practices, ideas and norms, acknowledging that no single approach will work, and that this is the work of lifetimes.
How did the Network emerge?
How did the Network emerge?
The UK Rights of Nature Network started as a small group of people connected by a WhatsApp group in Spring 2023 with a goal to create a shared space for those involved in the Rights of Nature in the UK.
One of the members organised a call every 2 weeks for a year and steadily evolved and grew into a supportive community who share updates, strategies, activities and thought leadership exploring the ways that humans can be re-embedded into the web of life and nature can be recognised as having intrinsic and relational value, and represented in legal and governance systems in the UK.
In July 2024, Phoebe Tickell and Lucy Gavaghan organised a planning retreat for network members in Hazel Hill Woods for 3 days of coordinated strategic organising, nature connection and relationship building. They then drew up a proposal for the coordination of the network, which was funded by the Earth Funding Lab and fiscally sponsored by Moral Imaginations.
Footage from Hazel Hill Woods
At our first in-person gathering, in July 2024, we were joined by Pietro Torrisi, a videographer who has dedicated recent years to a docuseries about the evolving global Rights of Nature movement. This trailer gives an introduction to the Network and insight into the group dynamic.
UK Rights of Nature Newsletters
Join our mailing list to be kept in the loop about the evolving UK Rights of Nature Movement.
Members will receive occasional, curated newsletters including recommendations for introductory materials, a roundup of key moments, and opportunities for deeper engagement.