More and more lawyers around the world are using laws not only to protect the environment, but to uphold a fundamental human right—to live in a healthy and sustainable setting. Monica Feria-Tinta, an international lawyer from Peru, specializes in human rights and international public law. She is known for her work in international courts, including the Inter-American Court of Human Rights and the International Court of Justice of the United Nations. Her particular focus is defending the rights of indigenous peoples, promoting climate justice, and advancing the concept of the rights of nature as a legal category.
She actively works to enable ecosystems to be recognized as rights-holders within legal systems. Through her efforts, some environmental cases have already become precedents, influencing the development of international environmental law. Whether it is a 150-year-old tree in South Essex, Ecuador’s Los Cedros forest, or indigenous communities affected by climate change.
She views environmental law not just as a tool, but as a path to rethinking the relationship between humans and nature. Her work encourages a reexamination of what justice means in an era of climate challenges. Perhaps one day this right will be written into international declarations—and it will be impossible to ignore.
