Wild Law: A Manifesto for Earth Justice

by Cormac Cullinan

Wild Law fuses politics, legal theory, quantum physics and ancient wisdom into a fascinating story. It has been seminal in informing and inspiring the global movement to recognize rights for Nature – a movement destined to shape the twenty-first century as significantly as the human rights movements shaped the twentieth century. This revised edition includes a new preface, postscript and the Universal Declaration of the Rights of Mother Earth proclaimed on 22 April 2010. Wild Law presents a vision of how we could transform the systems that structure and order industrialised societies to enable us to rediscover a viable role for our species within the Earth community. It reveals how the goverance systems of today legitimise and promote the disastrous expolitation and destruction of Earth. The author explains how to begin transforming these systems to ensure that the pursuit of human well-being enhances the beauty, health and diversity of Earth instead of diminishing it. Wild Law describes an Earth-centred approach to ordering human societies (Earth jurisprudence), how to apply it, and its emerging role as a common manifesto for promoting social and environmental justice, the conservation of biological and cultural diversity, animal rights and welfare, and green spirituality.

Genres: Nonfiction, Philosophy, Law, Ecology, Nature, Environment, Sustainability

209 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2002

Reviews

[Meg · Rating 4 out of 5]

What would our society look like if we took the Earth and other animals seriously in our political and legal structures? Cullinan engages this question thoughtfully as he takes preliminary steps in outlining what an 'Earth jurisprudence' might look like.
Cullinan is a lawyer from South Africa, and I think this adds greatly to his ability to envision new possibilities for society. He has seen an entire legal apparatus shift to meet the demands of justice, and hence has no problem in advocating for further shifting to account for those still ignored by modern law. While he does not provide any in-depth prescription for a legal system based in Earth jurisprudence, I think his book is a satisfactory and solid first step to prepare individual communities begin to imagine how they might structure their own societies to take the Earth Community into account.

[Deirdre · Rating 5 out of 5]

This a magnificent book on "Earth jurisprudence" and how we can change our basic understandings of justice and rights to include the natural world. This book goes beyond our current systems and into ideas from ancient cultures and the ideas of Thomas Berry and argues for incorporating the natural world into our lives instead of locking it out and living in our sterile humans only societies. The actual subtitle is not as listed, it's "A Manifesto of Earth Justice".

[Jonson Chong · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book. Very well written. Lucid arguments that will convince all reasonable persons except the cynical lawyer. Packed with points. All lawyers who care about the environment and social justice must read this book.

Probably difficult or expensive to get a hard copy. I suggest you get the ebook on Google Books.

[Wanda Guthrie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will be leading a book study on this in November. I really love this. If we are to usher in a new world view based on reality we must work to make sure Earth has standing. Earth is primary. Everything else is derivative.

[Jonson Chong · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book that is both well researched and well written. Anyone interested in the environment and environmental law must read this book.

[Maisie McDavid · Rating 5 out of 5]

Says what everyone who cares about the Earth really wants to say, and puts it into common sense.

[Dalton Stewart · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really great points on how our ideas of governance need to change to better consider our place in the natural order of things.

[Zak · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really hate the way he describes contemporary the human relationship as “autistic.” I hope that in any future editions of the book this description is changed to something less offensive.
I’m also not fully confident of his history. I don’t think that Galileo and Bacon should shoulder quite so much of the blame for the modern, divorced from nature conception of the world.
That said, I think this is overall quite brilliant. It spoke to a lot of thoughts and questions I’ve had, and helps to chart a way forward. I hope that many more people read this book and take its lessons to heart. The title can imply that this is only for lawyers, but it is much more broadly applicable. I firmly believe that we need to order our governance systems around nature, as nature is inextricably around us.

[Noah Christiansen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read:
- Various excerpts

[Edin Fleming · Rating 5 out of 5]

Found this in a charity store and have referenced it in almost all of my law assessments since. Incredible, mind-changing book.

[Sinem A. · Rating 3 out of 5]

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