Summary
On 13 January 2026, a bill was formally submitted in the Senate of Italy’s national legislature by member of parliament for the Green Party of Südtirol (South Tyrol), Aurora Floridia, seeking recognition of Lake Garda as a legal entity with rights and for its ecosystem protection.
Senator Floridia states that the proposal “arises from the awareness that the lake today requires new and concrete environmental protection tools.” The senator notes that “places of extraordinary natural value have already been recognized as legal entities” around the world, and while this framework is currently absent from the national legal system, it would be “fully consistent with European standards and the recent constitutional reform regarding the protection of the environment, biodiversity, and ecosystems.”
Declaration of the Rights of Lake Garda
On September 13 2024, citizens presented the Declaration of the Rights of Lake Garda as the first step in the process of recognizing the lake as a legal subject. The Declaration declares, that in compliance with the Constitution and laws of the Italian State, the Regions, and the Provinces, “Lake Garda enjoys legal subjectivity and the right to have its ecosystem preserved” and “the landscape, environment, cultural heritage, and beauty of Lake Garda’s ecosystem are values to be safeguarded.”
The Declaration empowers the local community with the responsibility of safeguarding the Lake, stating “it’s the duty of the Lake Garda inhabitants to ensure respect for the lake and to prevent, even as a precautionary measure, any damage that could irreversibly deteriorate the ecosystem.” It also stipulates the formation of the “General Council of the Lake and the Lakeside Inhabitants of Lake Garda,” which would serve as a representative body for Lake Garda and its related ecosystems.
The initiative is led by Isabella D’Isola, Pasquale Viola, Francesco Visentin, who drafted the original Declaration of the Rights of Lake Garda, and who are working to broaden the movement’s base of support, including political support for the bill in Parliament.
Next Steps
Once a proposal is introduced in the National Legislature, it is assigned to a parliamentary committee. Once assigned, the committee reviews the bill, drafts a report, then the Senate will amend and debate the bill. Once it is approved by both Houses of Parliament, the proposed legislation becomes law. The bill has not yet been assigned a committee.
Ecological Context
Lake Garda borders the provinces of Trento, Verona, and Brescia in northern Italy, and is the country’s largest lake. The lake is under pressure from climate change and over-tourism which are severely testing the lake’s equilibrium, which is further exacerbated by uncontrolled construction and growing pollution.
Involved Organizations
Suggested Citation:
Kauffman, Craig, Catherine Haas, Alex Putzer, Shrishtee Bajpai, Kelsey Leonard, Elizabeth Macpherson, Pamela Martin, Alessandro Pelizzon & Linda Sheehan. Eco Jurisprudence Monitor. V2. 2025. Distributed by the Eco Jurisprudence Monitor.https://ecojurisprudence.org/initiatives/declaration-of-the-rights-of-lake-garda/.
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