As summer approaches, the project Towards an international network of rivers and other elements of nature continues to flow, fueled by new encounters, upcoming workshops, and a shared horizon: Highlight #3, which will take place on Saturday, November 29, 2025, at the Lieu Unique.
Proposed Laws
Since its inception, the project has brought together researchers, legal experts, artists, activists, citizens, and elected officials around a shared goal: to make the voice of rivers heard and to imagine new forms of coexistence with living environments.
In just a few months, the momentum has grown: several law proposals inspired by previous workshops were submitted to the National Assembly during a historic symposium on the Rights of Nature.
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Workshop on the Laws to Come
On September 3, as part of the Grande Remontée de la Loire (Great Upstream Journey of the Loire), the Institute will host a symbolic stopover of the river voyage. On this occasion, the boatmen heading toward Orléans will meet with members of the Council of Witnesses to discuss the draft law proposals and join voices to make the river heard.
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Highlight #3 – Saturday, November 29, 2025
After calling for natural entities to be recognized as “subjects of rights” (Highlight #1), and then exploring legal cases from around the world in which rivers and lagoons have been granted “legal personhood” (Highlight #2), the project is now preparing to take a decisive new step.
On Saturday, November 29, 2025, starting at 4:00 PM, at Lieu Unique in Nantes, the public is invited to form THE GRAND ASSEMBLY.
In the spirit of parliaments where debates often continue well past midnight, this marathon evening will open up public discussion around the draft laws developed by the Council of Witnesses — a group of twelve citizens from the Nantes region. The goal: to collectively imagine a living law, one that can recognize the Loire, the Estuary, and other natural entities as full legal persons.
A historic moment not to be missed for all those who wish to take part in shaping a more just, more vibrant, and more inhabitable legal future.
