Earth Law Center Blog
Verte Volar: An Homage to Ancient Pollinators
"Verte Volar" is a new composition that honors the sacred relationship between humanity and stingless bees through an interdisciplinary partnership bridging science, law, ecology, poetry, and Indigenous ancestral knowledge. This spoken word and musical piece emerges from an unprecedented collaboration between Indigenous wisdom keepers, scientists, legal advocates, artists, and educators, weaving together diverse ways of knowing into a unified homage to Amazonian stingless bees. It was created by Carine Gibert, founder of Grounded In Motion, composed with Jacinta Clusellas, and produced by Benjamin Furman.
Safeguarding Native Stingless Bees: Protectors of Amazonian Biodiversity
Safeguarding Amazonian Stingless Bees is an internationally recognized ongoing project. Begun in Peru in 2023, it is led by Amazon Research Internacional (ARI) working collaboratively with the Earth Law Center (ELC), Instituto de Investigaciones de la Amazonía Peruana (IIAP), Reserva Comunal EcoAsháninka, and the Kukama-Kukamiria Indigenous communities of Loreto. The project integrates scientific, traditional, and legal knowledge and includes adopting a Declaration of Rights for Native Stingless Bees, collecting data to help create technical standards and regulations to support stingless beekeeping, mapping an initial 150,000 hectares of the Amazon, and recognizing the crucial role of Indigenous Peoples' traditional knowledge in enhancing our understanding of stingless bee populations.
The Marañón River Case, Ríos Protegidos Intiative, Native Stingless Bee Project, and More: Six Months in Action with the ELC Latin America Legal Team
ELC’s Latin America Legal Program has developed 4 pillars of our work: 1) Environmental justice initiatives, 2) Nature defenders and human rights initiatives , 3) Legislative and policy initiatives, 4) Global advocacy and movement building initiatives. Together with our partners, we currently have active projects in 5 countries in South and Central America. We have shared our expert insights in more than 20 environmental lawsuits, contributed to the formulation of 15 environmental bills, and successfully passed 4 laws recognizing the Rights of Nature.