Publication year: 2026


Synopsis:
From the Dolomites to the Lagoon, the bodies of water in north-eastern Italy are at the center of a silent crisis that environmental law, fragmented and anthropocentric, is unable to address.
What does it mean, then, to think of nature as a subject rather than a mere resource, recognizing that a river or a lagoon has the right to exist, regenerate, and take part in the decisions that concern it? This has already happened in Ecuador, New Zealand, Colombia, and Spain, and it is happening in Italy, in the Venice Lagoon. This volume brings together the contributions of researchers, legal scholars, activists, and artists who, beginning with the civic campaign of IDRA — the Initiative for the Rights of Water Networks — are working toward the recognition of legal personhood for the Lagoon and its drainage basin.
The book outlines the philosophical perspective and the international precedents of the global movement for the rights of nature, documenting the path that led to the Declaration of the Rights of the Venice Lagoon and tracing the road toward a profound transformation in the relationship between communities and ecosystems.
An invitation to build a legal framework capable of integrating environmental protection, social justice, and democratic participation, and a practical tool for anyone who wants to turn this vision into reality.


Other information:
Series: Fondamenta
Pages: 224
Language: Italian
ISBN: 9791280930606

With contributions by: Giorgio Bosisio, Rita Brugnara, Giulia Ciola, Paolo Comandini, Pietro Consolandi, Amilcare D’Andrea, Anja Dimitrijević, Chiara Famengo, Giovanni Fava, Mattia Favaretto, Francesco Ferrarese, Silvia Francescon, Cat Haas, Rosa Jijón, Costanza Lazzarin, Lu Lin, Giovanni Lorenzi, Daniele Marra, Francesco Martone, Massimiliano Montini, Pietro Daniel Omodeo, Giovanni Pellegrini, Silvia Petronici, Alex Putzer, Amalia Rossi, Katja Schechtner, Caterina Erica Shanta, Francesco Vallerani, Eva Venzo, Katia Zanatta.