The Environment as a Victim: overcoming the human-centric Paradigm of Rights

The present article evaluates the profound impact that recognizing the environment as a potential victim has for the enforceability of environmental rights and the particularities of the Latin American juridical systems that have been critical in this development affecting how environmental rights and protections are considered, in particular the understanding of the environment as a victim. In the 1990s, the In Dubio Pro Natura principle was developed via judicial decisions. This principle is understood as a separate principle of international law that requires authorities to interpret laws and regulations in the most favourable manner to the interests of nature. In the first decade of the 2000s, Ecuador and Bolivia constitutionalized environmental rights. This process embraced non-western legal approaches and traditions from indigenous peoples. More recently, Colombia’s restorative justice system has acknowledged the environment as a direct victim of their internal armed conflict. The process that has taken place in the Latin-American region represents a case study on challenging the human-centred paradigm of rights. This article discusses the significance and potential of this recognition for the enforceability of environmental rights.