"Bütler runs a law firm focusing on spatial planning and environmental law in Zurich. This past March, he delivered a seminar on the legal dimensions of glaciers before Zurich's glaciology group. "It's really a sad development that in Switzerland, the climate has changed very rapidly and strongly, and the effect is very real. And we lose a lot of snow and ice each year, which is hard to take," he said. "Some 40 years ago, it was a completely different world here.""
"But what rights do glaciers worldwide-or any natural phenomena, for that matter-have? The answer varies globally. While the rights of nature movement has reached many countries, there remains no international standard. Rights of nature are not just a theoretical concept. Some countries have adopted rigorous rights of nature doctrines-Ecuador was the first to do so, in 2008. Elsewhere, particular elements of nature have been granted legal personhood."
Michael Bütler became a lawyer specializing in spatial planning and environmental protection because of his connection to mountains and glaciers. He accepts cases that represent organizations and people pursuing environmental goals. He runs a Zurich law firm and recently presented on legal dimensions of glaciers before a glaciology group. He reports rapid climate change in Switzerland, with real loss of snow and ice compared with forty years ago. He has written on environmental law, including a book on glaciers. Rights of nature lack an international standard, though some countries, beginning with Ecuador in 2008, have adopted legal doctrines or personhood for natural elements.
Read at State of the Planet
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