Summary
On June 27 2024, city councillors Louise de Vries (Party for the Animals) and Gert Dijkstra (EenUtrecht) submitted a motion to the Utrecht City Council to recognize Nature as a legal entity within the city of Utrecht. The reasoning was that “Nature throughout the Netherlands is in poor condition and Utrecht must take matters into its own hands to properly care for nature in the municipality of Utrecht.” Since there is no current framework to represent the voice of nature, “giving nature a voice through a guardian ensures that the interests of nature are better represented.”
The motions states: “Utrecht also stands up for the unheard sound of nature by committing itself to granting nature the status of legal entity. As part of this, a guardian is appointed who can represent the interests of nature. This guardian is actively involved and heard in participation processes. In this way, Utrecht gives a voice to those and that which cannot stand up for themselves; animals, nature and the environment.”
The motion was rejected.
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/utrecht-city-council-amendment-to-make-nature-a-legal-person/.
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