CELDF is seeking a Grant Writer | Job Opening
The person in this position will play an integral role in expanding…
Blogs, News, News from the Grassroots, Resources
Important Updates
The person in this position will play an integral role in expanding…
Blogs, News, News from the Grassroots, Resources
A new system of law based on respect for Nature and the…
Issues, News, Resources, Rights of Nature
Protecting Water and Life: Frontline Stories from Ohioans fighting corporate and state…
Publications
Mar 27, 2023
Feature photo by Whylly Suhendra As much as humans have effectively organized to harm and destroy their land bases and each other, the innate drive to come together in community, to help each other in times of extreme events, is an even more powerful force. Manmade or naturally occurring, there are thousands of stories of… Read more »
Read More | EventsMar 24, 2023
A more honest report on the East Palestine disaster and details how the system itself is to blame and why these horrific and deadly events keep happening and our communities and nature keep bearing the brunt.
Read More | Blogs, Chemical Trespass, Community Rights, Corporate 'Rights', Democratic Rights, Extraction & Pollution, Rights of NatureMar 15, 2023
“Water Is Us” was moderated by ORCRN’s board member and CELDF organizer Kai Huschke. Joining him was: On February 22nd the ORCRN’s Webinar Wednesday meandered through a variety of water topics, from current conditions of water access and water quality to how the law sees water, to the growth of rights of nature to protect and preserve water, to… Read more »
Read More | Community Rights, Events, Extraction & Pollution, Multimedia, Resource Links, Rights of Nature, Water PrivitizationMar 10, 2023
Kai Huschke, with the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund, talks to us about the hierarchy of community rights, states rights, and corporate rights.
Read More | Community Rights, Corporate 'Rights', Democratic Rights, Events, Extraction & Pollution, Multimedia, Rights of NatureFeb 28, 2023
Rights of Nature Panel Discussion: Tuesday, March 21, 2023 from 6:30pm – 8:30pm PST
Read More | Events, Rights of NatureFeb 20, 2023
The “Exist, Flourish, Evolve” art show will be held at The Cleveland Museum of Contemporary Art and will focus on Rights of Nature and the Great Lakes in particular.
Read More | Events, Rights of NatureFeb 16, 2023
March 3rd at 1:15pm to 2:45pm PST/4:15pm to 5:45pm EST. CELDF’s Kai Huschke will be facilitating this panel on “Protecting our Vital Watersheds – Transitioning to Rights of Nature” focused on giving entities in nature such as rivers and watersheds legal rights.
Read More | Events, Rights of NatureFeb 14, 2023
Using illustrator and writer Shaun Tan’s short story “Bears with Lawyers” as a touchstone, this discussion will interrogate the societal conception of rights (and rites) within our current legal system and beyond.
Read More | Events, Rights of NatureFeb 9, 2023
CELDF is seeking a Grant Writer, view our posting to apply!
Read More |Feb 7, 2023
The person in this position will play an integral role in expanding CELDF’s support for its mission to advance democratic and environmental rights. This is a part-time remote contract position, with the possibility of an expanded role over time.
Read More | Blogs, News, News from the Grassroots, ResourcesJan 25, 2023
The Yamhill County Raging Grannies are sponsoring and online virtual Democracy School. Democracy School is made up of 4 sessions. Please plan to attend each of them. The dates of the sessions are as follows: $40 registration fee Direct questions to Joni Zimmerman at raginggranniesyc@gmail.com.
Read More | Events, UncategorizedJan 5, 2023
We must think about our history- the Revolutionaries were proposing an alternative to being a colony of England, abolitionists were fighting for an alternative to slavery, the suffragists for an alternative to patriarchy and on and on.
Read More | Blogs, Democratic RightsDec 10, 2022
Mangroves, according to the Ramsar definition, are considered wetlands – an area that CELDF is also helping to evolve coming out of the Declaration of the Rights of Wetlands.
Read More | Community Rights, Extraction & Pollution, News from the Grassroots, Rights of NatureNov 30, 2022
Feature Photo by Gabriel Kramer / Ideastream Public Media Taru Taylor, a guest blogger with CELDF, helped spearhead efforts to rename law schools named after Former Chief Justice John Marshall, a key architect of the United State’s constitutional system who owned 200 slaves. CELDF along with many others signed onto the calls for law schools… Read more »
Read More | News from the Grassroots, Success StoryNov 28, 2022
If you are interested in receiving our newsletter, the Susquehanna – either electronically or by mail – sign up here. Thank you! READ OUR NEWSLETTER and 2022 YEAR-END APPEAL
Read More | NewslettersNov 16, 2022
November 19, 2022 ~ 11AM ET Ben Price – Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (CELDF) – will be presenting at 11:00AM ET on “Nature as Property and the Nature of Property: Earth Emancipation is the Solution” Sponsored by the NH Conference of the United Church of Christ Co-sponsor: SNEUCC (Southern New England) Register Here. **Registration… Read more »
Read More | Events, NewsNov 10, 2022
View the film on your own or with others (organize a viewing party!) from Friday November 18 to Sunday November 20. The OHCRN will host a Zoom webinar discussion on Sunday November 20 at 2:00 pm ET. The panel will include the filmmaker, Jim Becket.
Read More | Corporate Agriculture, Events, News from the GrassrootsOct 28, 2022
The Global Alliance for the Rights of Nature (GARN) gathered in Siena Italy at the 13th century monastery, Certosa di Pontignano, from October 15-18, and CELDF was there.
Read More | Events, News from the Grassroots, Rights of NatureSep 30, 2022
CELDF organizers Tish O’Dell, Michelle Sanborn, and Chad Nicholson will present a panel discussion, October 11th at 12 PM EDT, on “Tapped Out: Is Water a Commodity to be Owned or a Living Being with Rights to Exist, Flourish and Thrive?”
Read More | Events, NewsSep 29, 2022
By Pamela Haines September 27, 2022 From the Navajo Nation to a small town in Pennsylvania to Ecuador, then across the world, the idea of enshrining the rights of nature is only growing.
Read More | News from the Grassroots, Rights of NatureSep 28, 2022
We at CELDF want to recognize and celebrate the 14-year anniversary of this historic date when the country of Ecuador codified Rights of Pachamama into their national Constitution.
Read More | News, News from the Grassroots, Rights of NatureSep 15, 2022
YES, the waters have a voice in this project….or at least they should.
Read More | Community Wires, News, News from the Grassroots, Rights of NatureSep 15, 2022
A new system of law based on respect for Nature and the obligations we share as collaborators with life-supporting ecosystems must be institutionalized, recognizing Nature as a unique legal entity and rights holder.
Read More | Issues, News, Resources, Rights of NatureSep 7, 2022
We want to begin this next chapter of the Nature Leads Series by unveiling CELF’s beautiful new Rights of Nature artwork and logo designed by two talented artists and organizers from the St. Lawrence River / Kaniatarowanenneh Watershed, Haudenosaunee Territory, in what is known as the New York State.
Read More | News, Rights of NatureAug 17, 2022
While unjust, the ruling from the Commonwealth Court is not unexpected. Courts have routinely ruled against communities and the environment in favor of harmful corporate interests.
Read More | Press ReleasesAug 16, 2022
CELDF will be leading a workshop on dismantling corporate privilege and elevating local-self determination in the context of evolving legal rights of nature. CELDF will also be part of a panel titled “Universal Declaration of the Rights of Wetlands: How Do We Operationalize These Rights?” with international colleagues from the Rights of Wetlands working group.
Read More | EventsJul 5, 2022
Wednesday, July 20, 2022 at 6:30 PM Eastern Time Sierra Club Niagara Group Environmental Series: Rights of Nature Legislation with Dr. Joe Stahlman, Tish O’Dell and Assemblyman Patrick Burke Rights of nature legislation bring us back to the concept of being one with nature, a belief held by indigenous cultures throughout the world. The current… Read more »
Read More | Events, NewsJul 5, 2022
We at CELDF were excited to be able to read the full decision of the Constitutional Court of Ecuador upholding the rights of the Los Cedros Forest over a mining project and we are sharing that decision with you in both English and Spanish. We want to thank the Global Alliance for the Rights of Nature… Read more »
Read More | News, Resources, Rights of NatureJun 14, 2022
NYWBA’s Animal Law and WBASNY’s Environmental Law Committees presents a webinar on June 20, 2022 at 6:00 – 7:30 PM (Eastern Time) On May 18, 2022, the New York Court of Appeals heard the habeus corpus petition involving “Happy the Elephant” and considered whether she is a person under the law. Recent legal efforts in… Read more »
Read More | Events, Rights of NatureJun 13, 2022
Dismantling the US Property Doctrine in the Name of Planet and People | JULY 5 | 9:15 PM (European Time Zone) CELDF’s Kai Huschke will be presenting in Poland for the International Society of Public Law (Panel #79). This conference is available to members only. You can join here. See the full program here. Environmental degradation is… Read more »
Read More | UncategorizedJun 8, 2022
SUNDAY, JUNE 12 – RIVERFRONT PARK, FRONT ST. & MARKET ST., HARRISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA This June 11, 12, and 13, people from across Pennsylvania will be converging in the streets in Harrisburg to change the conversation on climate change. The Pennsylvania Climate Convergence’s organizers are frontline community members, grassroots organizers, and advocates. If you are in… Read more »
Read More | EventsJun 8, 2022
This past November, Ecuador’s Constitutional Court ruled in favor of the Los Cedros Cloud Forest ecosystem and local communities’ rights over the rights of a foreign mining corporation. Truly a seminal case for legal rights of nature, the court addressed the regulatory permitting process, the precautionary principle, biodiversity, community input into the decision-making process, and… Read more »
Read More | EventsMay 4, 2022
As many are aware, CELDF has stood with the people and ecosystems of Grant Township (Indiana County, PA, population 700) in their courageous efforts to keep a frack waste injection well out of the community.
Read More | Chemical Trespass, Community Rights, Corporate 'Rights', Democratic Rights, Extraction & Pollution, Issues, News, Rights of NatureApr 18, 2022
April 20th is a big day in Harrisburg for the rights of communities to defend their water from industrial pollution. For years Grant Township, in Indiana County, PA, has been resisting the placement of injection wells on their land. In 2015 Township residents adopted a Home Rule Charter containing a “Community Bill of Rights.” This… Read more »
Read More | Community Wires, NewsApr 15, 2022
If corporations have rights, why not Nature? Join the Virginia Community Rights Network (VACRN) and its partner organizations for the virtual viewing and discussion of the award-winning film Invisible Hand. Watch the 90-minute movie during the 24-hour window. Then join us for a zoom discussion. Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (CELDF) organizers Tish O’Dell and Ben… Read more »
Read More | Events, NewsApr 14, 2022
PART 2: WHO SPEAKS FOR NATURE? APRIL PUBLIC FORUM – Women’s City Club of Greater CincinnatiTUESDAY, APRIL 19, 7 PM via ZOOM The forum will look at a new legal strategy for protecting our water and natural environment from the emerging new threats of industrial pollutants. PANELISTS Tish O’Dell, Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (CELDF)Susan… Read more »
Read More | Events, NewsApr 12, 2022
A showing of the documentary “The Invisible Hand” at the Taos Center for the Arts in New Mexico will take place, with its producer, Melissa A. Troutman, who will speak about rights of nature along with live-streamed members of CELDF for a Q&A. The Rio Grande is in great danger and needs our bodies and… Read more »
Read More | Events, NewsApr 11, 2022
Episode DescriptionIn 2019, after a decade-long campaign, voters in Toledo Ohio voted to approve the Lake Erie Bill of Rights, effectively giving the lake personhood. It drew an incredible amount of attention. This wasn’t San Francisco hippies or Brooklyn hipsters talking about rights of nature, this was middle-aged moms in the Rust Belt, and that… Read more »
Read More | Multimedia, News, Resources, Rights of NatureMar 22, 2022
Filmed during the weeks after protests began, Santiago Rising meets social movements, protesters, and ordinary people in their struggle for equality and human rights. The film charts the build-up to the historic vote, in October 2020, that saw Chileans vote for a new constitution to replace the one imposed during the brutal Pinochet dictatorship. Santiago Rising emphasizes… Read more »
Read More | Events, Issues, News, News from the GrassrootsMar 22, 2022
Carolyn Harding with Tish O’Dell, a powerful voice for justice in Ohio, the US, and Globally. Tish has been a Community Organizer for CELDF (Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund) since 2012 assisting residents to organize rights-based initiatives in their communities in order to help them “make real” the just and sustainable communities they envision for… Read more »
Read More | Community Rights, Democratic Rights, Issues, News, News from the Grassroots, Publications, ResourcesMar 16, 2022
CELDF’s Tish O’Dell is speaking on Panel #4, “Contamination of Water.” This Panel will take place on Friday, March 25 from 11:40 AM – 12:45 PM.
Terry Lodge, activist attorney with CELDF, is speaking on Panel #2, “Contamination of Land.” This panel will take place on Thursday, March 24 from 11:50 AM – 12:55 PM
American University Washington College of Law’s Program on Environmental and Energy Law and Sustainable Development Law & Policy Brief, in association with the Animal Law Society, Energy Law & Policy Society, Environmental Law Society, and Native American Law Students Association are excited to host this year’s annual Symposium, “Lucrative Losses & Poisonous Profits: An Overview of the Domestic and Global Exploitation of Nature and the Way Forward” over Zoom from 10 AM – 1 PM on March 24 and 25, 2022. Over the course of four panels—activists, professors, legal and policy experts, climate scientists, and professors will discuss the international and domestic contamination and overuse of water and land from modern environmental law, indigenous, and rights of nature perspectives. The panelists will explore the devastating impacts of some of nature’s biggest threats, including pollution, deforestation, and industrial fishing.
Read More | Chemical Trespass, Corporate 'Rights', Events, Extraction & Pollution, News, Rights of Nature, Water PrivitizationMar 10, 2022
“New Normal” Needs a New Constitutional Amendment discussion from the Public Interest Environmental Law Conference PIELC.
Read More | Corporate 'Rights', Democratic Rights, Multimedia, News from the Grassroots, Rights of NatureMar 10, 2022
The Lake Erie Bill of Rights and CELDF are influencing Bower’s work on Rights of Nature.
Read More | News from the Grassroots, Rights of NatureMar 2, 2022
The bill paves the way for litigation against polluters on behalf of the ecosystem Press ReleaseThursday, February 24th, 2022 NYS Assemblymember Patrick B. Burke Office Contact: Brendan Keany, Communications Director716-608-6099 | keanyb@nyassembly.gov CELDF Contacts: Tish O’Dell, Organizer440-552-6774 tish@celdf.org Ben Price, Organizer717-254-3233 benprice@celdf.org Buffalo, NY – New York State Assemblyman Patrick Burke has introduced legislation… Read more »
Read More | Press ReleasesMar 1, 2022
Jim Hightower mentions CELDF in his publication on the growing Rights of Nature movement and the importance of protecting the health and survivability of ecosystems worldwide.
Read More | News from the GrassrootsFeb 14, 2022
“The Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (CELDF) is helping build a decolonial movement for Community Rights and the Rights of Nature to advance democratic, economic, social, and environmental rights – building upward from the grassroots to the state, federal, and international levels.”
Read More | Press ReleasesFeb 8, 2022
We are firm in our support of human and civil rights for all people, including the transgender community, without exception.
Read More | Press Releases