Rights of Nature
Cross Cultural Bridges began working on the Rights of Nature as a natural extension of its long-standing collaboration with Indigenous peoples of Latin America, whose worldviews recognize Nature as a living being with intrinsic rights. Since its founding in 2005, the organization has promoted intercultural dialogue, conflict transformation, and cooperation between the Global South and North, inspired by political ecology, the theory of the commons, and Buen Vivir. In 2024, it contributed to the Amicus Curiae for the legal recognition of the rights of the Marañón River in Peru, in partnership with the UN Harmony with Nature Programme and universities in the Netherlands, Germany, and Peru. This effort linked human rights, environmental law, and Earth governance, paving the way for participation in the Lake Titicaca case, whose Amicus Curiae was presented in June 2025. These initiatives have reinforced Cross Cultural Bridges’ mission to unite scientific and Indigenous knowledge in defense of life and to advance the global movement redefining humanity’s relationship with the living Earth.
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Working on the Rights of Nature represents a natural evolution in the trajectory of Cross Cultural Bridges. Since its founding in 2005, the organization has cultivated close relationships with Indigenous peoples across Latin America, learning from their worldviews that recognize Nature as a living being with intrinsic rights. Its work in Peru and beyond has been shaped by intercultural dialogue and conflict transformation, grounded in the understanding of the profound interconnection between humans and the natural world. Over time, this engagement has allowed the organization to integrate Indigenous thought not only as inspiration but as a framework for reimagining justice and cooperation beyond anthropocentric models. Influenced by traditions such as political ecology, the theory of the commons, and the Global South–North dialogue, as well as the biocentric paradigm of Buen Vivir embodied in Andean constitutions, Cross Cultural Bridges has advanced the Rights of Nature through collaboration among communities, institutions, and researchers, bridging diverse systems of knowledge in pursuit of ecological justice.
In 2024, Cross Cultural Bridges joined one of Peru’s pioneering legal efforts to recognize the Rights of Nature through the case of the Marañón River, a vital tributary of the Amazon. Building on its involvement with the United Nations Harmony with Nature Programme, the organization contributed to an Amicus Curiae brief prepared with experts from universities in the Netherlands, Germany, and Peru. Submitted in October 2024, the document offered an interdisciplinary and intercultural analysis of the relationship between economic activity, human rights, and environmental law. This milestone linked scientific knowledge with ethical reflection and community experience, affirming that the defense of rivers and ecosystems is inseparable from the defense of the communities that live in harmony with them.
Following the Marañón experience, Cross Cultural Bridges joined the process to recognize the rights of Lake Titicaca in November 2024, alongside local organizations and the Instituto de Defensa Legal. The initiative seeks to affirm the rights of the lake as part of the broader Andes–Amazon ecosystem, integrating cultural, spiritual, and ecological dimensions. The organization’s strategy emphasized cooperation between the Global South and North and the amplification of Indigenous voices, especially those of “water peoples” whose lives reflect a relational understanding of existence. The Amicus Curiae for Lake Titicaca, presented to the Superior Court of Justice of Puno on June 3, 2025, continues to inspire dialogue and collaboration across regions and disciplines.
Together, the Marañón and Titicaca cases mark decisive moments in Cross Cultural Bridges’ Rights of Nature agenda. They consolidate its role as a platform for intercultural cooperation and reinforce its commitment to the principles of Buen Vivir, which call for harmony between human societies and the community of life. By extending its focus to the Andes–Amazon macro-ecosystem, the organization expands the framework of human rights to include the intrinsic rights of Nature, connecting Latin American experiences with global movements such as the recognition of the Mar Menor in Spain. Through these initiatives, Cross Cultural Bridges continues to embody its founding mission—to serve as a bridge between cultures and as a catalyst for transformation toward a more just, interconnected, and life-sustaining world.
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