The big names in Brisbane’s environmental movement rolled up to Avid Reader last night to launch a new book Wild Law in Practice. Editor of the tome and National Convenor of Australian Earth Laws Alliance (ALEA) Michelle Maloney was joined by Emeritus Professor Ian Lowe and Steven White from Griffith University and Professor Douglas Fisher and Felicity Deane from QUT.
The thronging masses were given plenty of opportunity for questions and they flowed thick and fast. Clearly the time has come for a deeper understanding of humanities relationship with nature and that has moved beyond the activism of pioneers like Captain Paul Watson to the legal fraternity.
Interestingly for such an avowedly scientific bunch a lot of the inspiration comes from the work of twentieth century monk Thomas Berry.
Wild Law: In Practice is an edited collection by Michelle Maloney and Dr Peter Burdon. It aims to facilitate the transition of Earth Jurisprudence from theory into practice. Earth Jurisprudence is an emerging philosophy of law, coined by cultural historian and deep ecologist Thomas Berry. It seeks to provide the foundation for a radical shift in law and governance from an exclusive focus on human beings to recognition of human interconnectedness with the comprehensive Earth community.
This volume addresses a range of topics including the effectiveness of environmental law, the practical implementation of the rights of nature, the role of civil society in transforming law and governance, limits to growth and the connections between animal law and Earth jurisprudence.