Panama National Rights of Nature Law

Summary

On February 24 2022, Panama passed a national Rights of Nature Law incorporating Nature’s rights to exist, persist, and regenerate its life cycles; to timely and effective restoration; and to the preservation of its water cycles into national law. The law recognizes Nature as a subject of rights, its intrinsic value, and the obligation of the State and all natural or legal persons to protect these rights, as well as to have legal standing for its defense. The law also includes a set of ecocentric principles, such as “in dubio pro natura,” which means that when scientific uncertainty exists about the consequences of an activity on an ecosystem, the State must prioritize protecting nature. The law entered into force in February 2023. Panama follows a short list of countries to have recognized the Rights of Nature at the national level (after Ecuador, Bolivia and Uganda).

The law was drafted in close collaboration with Callie Veelenturf (marine conservation biologist and founder of the Leatherback Project) who originally proposed the concept of a Panama Rights of Nature law in February 2020 to legislator Juan Diego Vásquez (the youngest Panamanian Congressperson) who raised awareness about the issue and helped draft, edit, and introduce the law to Panama’s National Assembly on September 23, 2020. The law was also drafted with support from Felipe Baker, a biology student and part of the Ngöbe-Buglé indigenous community, and the Earth Law Center.