Summary
On 17 July 2023, the Municipality of Cáceres in Brazil approved an amendment to include the rights of nature in its Organic Law. However, on August 16, the Municipal Council repealed the Amendment to Organic Law No. 49 in its entirety and restored the law to its original, former effect.
The amendment stated that “Nature has intrinsic value, i.e. value in itself. It should not just be seen as a resource for human benefit. We have an ethical responsibility to protect and respect nature for its own sake.” It also emphasized that “protecting the rights of nature is a fundamental issue in guaranteeing the sustainability and survival of planet Earth” and that “Nature and human beings are interconnected and interdependent. Without a healthy and sustainable environment, human beings cannot survive. It is therefore our duty to protect and preserve nature.” (page 5). The document embraced the principles of Bem Viver (good living), and referred to the case of the Doce River becoming a subject of rights.
The inclusion was originally approved after holding a conference and public hearings to discuss the importance and need to consider Nature as a subject of rights. The conference and public hearings, which contributed to the approval of the Amendment Project, had the participation of civil society and NGOs: Fé e Vida Institute, Gaia Institute, Paraguay River/Pantanal Committee, Regional ARPA (Regional Association of Agroecological Producers), FORMAD (Forum Mato Grosso de Meio Ambiente e Desenvolvimento), and of Mireni de Oliveira Costa Silva, doctoral student of the University of Marília (PPGD/UNIMAR).
Related Initiatives
Suggested Citation:
Kauffman, Craig, Catherine Haas, Alex Putzer, Shrishtee Bajpai, Kelsey Leonard, Elizabeth Macpherson, Pamela Martin, Alessandro Pelizzon & Linda Sheehan. Eco Jurisprudence Monitor. V2. 2026. Distributed by the Eco Jurisprudence Monitor. https://ecojurisprudence.org/initiatives/municipality-of-caceres-brazil-municipal-organic-law-amendment-recognizing-the-rights-of-nature/.
When using our data, please follow the FAIR and CARE Principles for data governance outlined in our Ethics Statement. We are doing our best to be correct in the information we provide, but if you notice any omission or inaccuracy, please report this to us immediately at info@ecojurisprudence.org so we can correct it.
Eco Jurisprudence Tracker is licensed under CC BY 4.0
