The European Commission decided on Tuesday 19 May to register two European citizens’ initiatives (ECIs) aimed at strengthening the protection of biodiversity and ecosystems within the Union.
The first, entitled ‘Rights for Nature: Empower Citizens to Represent and Protect Ecosystems’ (https://aeur.eu/f/lz2 ), calls on the Commission to recognise legal rights for nature in European law. The ECI advocates a paradigm shift, moving from a conception of nature as property to that of ecosystems endowed with fundamental rights, such as the right to exist, to regenerate and to be restored.
The second ECI – ‘Reconnecting nature through the creation of European biodiversity corridors’ (https://aeur.eu/f/lz3 ) – aims to “reconnect nature” by creating European biodiversity corridors. It proposes a co-ordination framework to improve ecological connectivity between terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems and tackle their fragmentation, together with stronger cross-border co-operation and the Natura 2000 network.
The Commission considers both initiatives legally admissible, without commenting on their content at this stage.
To be examined on their merits, they will need to gather at least one million signatures in seven EU Member States. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)