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Bolivia is to pass a law -- called la Ley de Derechos de la Madre Tierra (The Law of Mother Earth) --
which will grant nature equal rights to humans.
The law -- the first of its kind -- aims to encourage a major shift in attitudes towards conservation and to reduce pollution and exploitation of natural resources. It sees a range of new rights established for nature including the right to life; the right to water and clean air; the right to repair livelihoods affected by human activities and the right to be free of pollution.
Bolivia is one of South America's poorest countries and is seeing its rural communities suffer with failing crops due to climatic events such as floods and droughts. Temperatures are set to rise by up to four degrees celsius over the next 100 years, while most of its glaciers are likely to melt within 20 years.
The Bolivian government -- under president Evo Morales -- will establish a ministry of mother earth and commit to give communities the authority to monitor and control the industries and businesses that are polluting the environment.
The belief is that industrial entities can learn from the traditions of indigenous populations who have a deep-rooted respect for the environment. The notion of "Pachamama" or the spiritual entity similar to the idea mother earth, is increasingly being referred to in governmental discussions and documents.
It is not clear at this stage how the somewhat abstract legislation would be implemented. The state will need to be careful to balance the rights of nature with the regulation of industries (such as mining) that contribute a significant chunk of the country's GDP.
Bolivia has been extremely forthright in the global arena and has called for developed countries to contribute one percent of GDP to help poor and vulnerable nations. Bolivian Foreign Minister David Choquehuanca has been quoted saying that western development has created a "deathly wound to our Pachamama".
If you are interested, you can check out the law (in Spanish) here
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