Panel: Expanding the Rights of Nature by Enabling Land to Own Itself

The Center for Democratic and Environmental Rights (CDER) has pioneered the Land That Owns Itself, building on our founders work developing the world’s first Rights of Nature laws.

We are thrilled to join with our Sacred Contract coalition partners to present on this work at the 2026 Bioneers Conference.

Sacred Contract, an organization committed to re-imagining our relationship to land by restoring a sacred and culturally-aligned relationship between humans and the rest of nature, designed and then stewarded the process of a mountain in Colorado becoming the first in the world to transition from human ownership to “owning itself.”

In this panel, board members of Sacred Contract will explain: how “land sovereignty” differs from traditional land conservation models; the role of majority Indigenous-led Land Guardian councils; and how the Land That Owns Itself can radically enhance ecosystem protection against destructive extractive assaults.

The panel will included: Jennifer Menke of Regenerative Earth; Cassandra Ferrera and Abi Huff of the Center for Ethical Land Transition; and Thomas Linzey, senior counsel at CDER.

Registration is now open - register here today!