Photo titled “Santa Monica Beach and Pier” by Ian Liget on Flickr
(4) Santa Monica, California The efforts of Mark Gold, the then 20-year Chair of Santa Monica’s Task Force on the Environment, and Earth Law Center called for moving beyond the City’s extensive sustainability programs and taking the next step of recognizing Nature’s inherent rights. Leading up to the ordinance, CELDF held a three-day Democracy School Training and Global Exchange, a California based advocacy and non-governmental organization, presented a draft ordinance to the City’s Task Force on the Environment. The Task Force ultimately supported the ordinance, but the road to adoption was long, taking three years in total with significant rewrites of the ordinance, despite Santa Monica’s pre-disposition to a progressive approach to environmental protection. • Obstacle: Convincing legislators who actively support current frameworks of environmental protection that a new conceptual and legal approach is necessary and must be pursued, even though according legal rights to Nature is a difficult challenge in our property-oriented legal system. • Solution: Taking small progressive steps, such as starting with a resolution and then moving to an ordinance, and building on those steps. • Take Away: Small changes can lead to great changes. Set practical measurable goals and educate the public. • Who Passed the Law: Santa Monica City Council.
Community Toolkit for Earth Law
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