The Center for Democratic and Environmental Rights (CDER) and Universidad San Francisco de Quito are organizing an event at the university on the need for protection of sharks, and the rights of shark species, in the context of the international trade agreement CITES.

The event is sponsored by CDER, TRAFFIC, ECOLAP at the Universidad San Francisco de Quito, and the Universidad San Francisco de Quito.

Speakers will include CDER’s Hugo Echeverría, Karen Noboa of TRAFFIC, and Alex Hearn from the University ECOLAP.

Ecuador is the first country in the world to recognize the rights of nature in its Constitution.

CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) is an international agreement aimed at ensuring the global trade of wild animals does not threaten species survival. In force since 1975, 185 countries, including Ecuador, are now Parties to CITES.

In 2024, CITES recommended a global suspension on shark trade from Ecuador. The suspension - which is still in force - involves three shark species that are impacted by "bycatch," the unintentional catching and killing of sharks by commercial fishing. It is well known in Ecuador that "unintentional" bycatch affects shark species protected by CITES, and that the selling of shark parts is very lucrative.

This event will focus on the suspension of shark trade under CITES, and identify conditions necessary to protect shark species in accordance with international standards, as well as Ecuador’s own constitutional principles, rules, duties, and rights, including the rights of nature.

According to CITES, international wildlife trade is estimated to be worth billions of dollars annually. Levels of exploitation of some animal species are high and the trade in them can heavily depleting their populations, and even bringing some species close to extinction. This is the case with sharks.

Approximately 400 species of sharks are found in the world, and 21 species have been listed by CITES as in need of protection from "over-exploitation."

As CITES uses trade measures for its implementation, one recommendation for improving the effectiveness of the Convention is a temporary suspension of trade in specimens of species adversely affected by trade. A recommendation to suspend trade provides a period during which a Party can move from non-compliance to compliance by taking measures, such as on species-protective legislation or reducing illegal trade.

The event will take place on Thursday, March 26, at the Universidad San Francisco de Quito campus in Quito.

Location: Teatro Casa Blanca, Universidad San Francisco de Quito, Quito, Ecuador.

Date: Thursday, May 26. Time: 3-5PM local time.

Rights of Nature Symposium - Vermont Law School

On Saturday, March 14th, CDER's Thomas Linzey will keynote the Rights of Nature Symposium at Vermont Law School.

Following his keynote address, there will be a panel on the rights of nature. Thomas will join Rebecca Jim, a member of the Cherokee Nation who led a campaign to recognize the rights of Tar Creek in Miami, OK; Emily Boles, a member of the Abenaki Nation and an environmental scientist; Earl Hatley, a member of the Abenaki Nation and coordinator of the event; and others for a discussion on advancing the Rights of Nature into law.

The symposium is being coordinated by LEAD Agency, a grassroots environmental justice organization in Miami, Oklahoma.

The event will take place from 9am-1pm Eastern Time, at the Multicultural Center at the law school in South Royalton, Vermont. For more information, contact Earl Hatley at earlhatley77@gmail.com.

To attend virtually - click here.

Sovereign Nations of Virginia Conference

Ancestral Wisdom Guides Today's Paths: Indigenous Conservation and Rights of Nature

The 2025 Sovereign Nations of Virginia Conference will brings together tribes across the state.

It will feature presentations and discussions on important topics in Indigenous conservation and environmental stewardship.

Frank Bibeau, head of CDER’s Tribal Rights of Nature Program, and Thomas Linzey, CDER’s Senior Legal Counsel, will present at the conference on their work to advance the rights of nature. This includes CDER’s work with the Rappahannock Tribe of Virginia, which in 2024 became the first Tribal Nation to enshrine the rights of nature within a tribal constitution.

Additional topics include conservation easements that work for tribes, the development of an Indigenous Guardians Network, and Indigenous land management practices.

Conference registration is free. To learn more and to register, click here.

Acompáñenos en este importante seminario web sobre los Derechos de la Naturaleza y el Rol del Poder Judicial.

El abogado Hugo Echeverría, del Centro para los Derechos Democráticos y Ambientales, radicado en Ecuador, presentará cómo los tribunales han interpretado y aplicado los derechos de la naturaleza.

Other experts will also participate in this crucial discussion, including Maritza Quispe del Instituto del Defensa Legal.

3pm Nueva York. 2pm Quito. 1pm Mexico. #derechosdelanaturaleza #rightsofnature

En español. Este evento es gratuito. ¡Regístrate hoy!

The Rights of Nature vs. Human Rights?

University of Minnesota

Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs

April 11, 2024

8:30 am - 12:30 pm CDT

CDER’s Director of our Tribal Rights of Nature Program, Frank Bibeau, is joining a panel discussion - hosted by the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota - with leading scholars, lawyers, and activists on the rights of nature in the Americas.

The discussion will include a focus on how the rights of nature have advanced not just the protection of the environment, but also Indigenous and Afrodescendant rights in Ecuador, Colombia, and the United States.

This event will be in English and Spanish, with simultaneous translation.

Register to Attend

Can’t Attend In Person? Check Out the Livestream for the event

2024 Public and Allied Health Symposium

From Crisis to Recovery: Health Challenges and Community Rights
in East Palestine, OH

Hosted by Bowling Green State University and the College of Health and Human Services

April 4, 2024

11:00am-2:00pm EST

Bowen-Thompson Student Union, Lenhart Grand Ballroom

CDER’s Senior Legal Counsel, Thomas Linzey is presenting as a keynote speaker at the Symposium.

He is widely recognized as the founder of the contemporary community rights movement which has resulted in the adoption of several hundred laws across the U.S. and world that protect the environment and public health. He will join public health experts Dr. Wes Vins, Laura Fauss, and Dr. Getchen Nickell, at the event.

The Symposium will be offered free of charge and will be offered in person and live stream. Lunch is free for registered in-person attendees, with registration required by March 15, 2024.

To register for this event and for more information, please visit here.

March 12, 2024: 6:00PM to 7:00PM

CDER’s Senior Legal Counsel Thomas Linzey will be joining Karenna Gore of the Center for Earth Ethics, along with Steven “Owl” Smith of the Ramapo Munsee Nation to discuss the movement for the Rights of Nature.

This webinar will give an overview of the field, situate it in the context of Riverkeeper’s work, and give up-to-date information about jurisprudence and litigation on the national and international level.

This webinar will be available via Zoom, and is free. To register for this event, please visit here.

Los Derechos de la Naturaleza en la Resevera Marina de Galápagos

The event is organized by CDER with Universidad San Francisco de Quito

Thursday, December 7, 2023

Location: Universidad San Francisco de Quito, Quito, Ecuador

1 PM Ecuador (GMT-5)/1PM Eastern - En Espanol

Livestream available here

We invite you to attend this in-person conference on December 7th, where the Center for Democratic and Environmental Rights (CDER) attorney, Hugo Echeverria, will be presenting on a panel on the protection of marine life in the Galapagos, which will also include renowned USFQ Professors Alex Hearn and Juan Manuel Guayasamín, both experts on Galapagos issues as well as on protected species.

This conference is an opportunity to learn about the challenges the Galapagos Marine Reserve faces regarding the protection of marine life. This is the first event organized by the CDER focusing on the “blue” perspective of the rights of nature, a topic that is receiving growing attention by the rights of nature movement worldwide.

In Ecuador, the Constitution secured the rights of nature - Pacha Mama - in 2008. 

A livestream option is also available here.

Los Derechos Constitucionales de la Naturaleza en el Ecuador: Casos Pendientes en la Corte Constitucional

Law School of Universidad de las Américas UDLA

November 22nd, 2023

5:00 PM Eastern Time, 5:00 PM Ecuador (GMT-5) Local Time

You are invited to join us in-person or online, for this seminar titled Los Derechos Constitucionales de la Naturaleza en el Ecuador: Casos Pendientes en la Corte Constitucional. This event will be en Espanol.

This event will take place in Quito at the Law School of Universidad de las Américas UDLA, in Auditorio 1 y 2 Campus Granados.

The seminar is organized by the Center for Democratic and Environmental Rights (CDER) with the Law School of Universidad de las Américas UDLA. Here is the list of speakers:

• CDER’s External Attorney, Hugo Echeverria

• Ecuador Constitutional Court Judge, Alejandra Cárdenas, who is also a Professor at UDLA Law School

• Environmental Law Professor Viviana Morales

Ecuador is the first country to recognize constitutional rights to nature, in 2008. Ecuador’s Constitutional Court - the top Court of the country - has issued the first jurisprudence endowing these new rights with essential content. 

Today there are multiple rights of nature cases pending before the Constitutional Court. The goal of the seminar is the analysis of these cases, which include the river Dulcepamba, the river Piatúa, and the Forest of the Cuenca Alta Nangaritza cases, on hydropower and mining issues.

The event will continue the Constitutional Law discussion on the scope and content of these new rights that CDER has been hosting through a series of webinars beginning in 2022. In 2022, we organized the first one with Instituto de Altos Estudios Nacionales. In March 2023, we organized the second one with Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja; in May, the third one with Universidad de Guayaquil; and in September 2023, the fourth one with Pontificia Universidad Católica.

This event is free, and will be broadcast via UDLA's social media as well, with all social platforms located on the official program website.