Rare Earth - Can lawyers save the planet?

Can lawyers save the planet?

Download Can lawyers save the planet?

What can the legal system do to protect the environment? Tom Heap and Helen Czerski gather together a panel of legal and environmental experts to discuss their battles for the planet. How much protection does nature have in law at the moment, and do legal rights make any real difference in practice? They debate whether nature should be given official legal rights, like human rights.

Today's panel:
Paul Powlesland - barrister, campaigner, founder of Lawyers for Nature
Laura Clarke - CEO of Client Earth
Rosa Vásquez Espinoza - biologist, conservationist, founder of Amazon Research International

Producer: Emma Campbell

Assistant Producer: Toby Field

Published on Friday, 18th September 2026.

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