Can this lake get legal personhood status?
Welcome back to Friday! 24 down, 28 to go.
And this week I learned that a lake in Europe is suing the company that polluted it and if they win, your local nature might be able to follow their lead.
Back in 2022, a lagoon in Spain called the Mar Menor was legally granted the right to “exist as an ecosystem and evolve naturally”, with a group of scientists, politicians, and citizens representing it as custodians.
But when a company was caught stealing water and dumping contaminants back in, the custodians filed a lawsuit seeking seven years in prison and €500,000.
It’s still ongoing, but when a group of citizens that were frustrated with companies getting away with destroying the natural world heard about it, they decided to build on this momentum and filed a formal petition with the EU that legally must be considered if it gets at least a million signatures, which they’ll start collecting in a few months.
And their demands are for a new law across Europe that officially lets polluted waterways and deforested woodlands to take their polluters to court, giving nature the same legal personhood rights as a company or you to hire a lawyer and sue.
They’re calling it Rights for Nature, and it might have the ability to transform the world, by legally requiring wilderness to be protected and enabling citizens to ensure that happens through the courts.
And although it’s just for Europe at the moment, powerful ideas like these should be supported by all of us, because maybe this is the future of truly protecting the natural world?
What else is going right in the world this week?
New York voted to pause large data centers
New York just voted to pause large data centers for the next year while new rules are developed around energy prices, water use, labor rights, and benefits for the communities they would impact. It passed despite Big Tech opposition, and now it just needs the governor’s signature. (Bianca Caputo|News10)
Minnesota banned prediction markets
While Minnesota became the first state to ban prediction markets, which are those gambling platforms that let people bet on literally anything and are highly susceptible to corruption like people betting on their own elections, insider tech information, pre-taped shows, and even classified military missions. So long story short, banning these is probably good. (Bobby Allyn|NPR)
Indigenous fishers went from facing jail to leading conservation
Two Aboriginal Australian divers were facing 10 years of jail for their cultural fishing practices until the case was abandoned after just 11 days. Now, in a complete turnaround, their Indigenous-led program got a $1.5 million grant to restore the damaged ocean by using their knowledge to clear invasive urchins and heal the barrens they left behind. (Vanessa Milton & Toby Hemmings|ABC)
The scientist who mapped the Wood Wide Web
When a woman realized, “we know more about space than the underground”, she decided to map the fungi network flowing beneath our feet called the Wood Wide Web.
Because despite soils being home to 25% of all species on Earth, they’re often forgotten about in conservation.
So Dr. Toby Kiers advocated for this hidden world of underground biodiversity, focusing on mycorrhizal fungi, which are huge networks of threads connecting plant roots to exchange nutrients, store carbon, and create forest cooperation.
Yet they’re vulnerable to the expansion of farming with pesticides, deforestation, and urbanization.
Which is why the global Underground Atlas she helped create is such a cool tool that uncovers some of the mystery and the positive differences fungi are making, including healthier soil, better food quality, and savings for farmers.
Her work is so impressive that she recently won the $250,000 Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement, letting her continue to bring together scientists, Indigenous communities, decision makers, and artists to protect fungi through education, the legal system, and policy.
TAKE ACTION WITH ME:
I’m starting a Chilli page to post actions we can take collectively to move the needle forward. Start by helping turn this Wood Wide Web knowledge into policy that protects our lands. It only take a minute!
Our community took action
👨 breadandonion’s spouse started a playground meetup for dads which has grown to 500 fathers in the group chat meeting up and making connections over the past 6 years.
+ Bonus stories!
A lost parrot has returned.
Solar is now generating more energy in the US than coal.
New York doesn’t have the best record at keeping promises when it comes to renewables… but they just announced a big nuclear energy push,
Have a win or good story to share? Let us know! And have an amazing weekend.
This newsletter was written by Jacob Simon. Over 1 million people are in our community across Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. You can say hi on LinkedIn, or by hitting reply. Brand illustration by Andrea Miralles. Thanks for helping spread some positivity, and see you next week for more.