Neil W Williams

A philosopher, a lawyer, and an anthropologist walk into a forest. Not the start of a joke, but the end of a research trip to Aotearoa New Zealand. Over a month, we camped, tramped, and canoed our way to meetings with academics, representatives, and rights-bearing entities. (1/3)

Huge news for the rights of nature in the UK, as Lewes Council endorses a Charter recognising the rights of the River Ouse! Fantastic work from the Environmental Law Foundation and Love Our Ouse. #RiverRights #RightsForNature #LoveOurOuse

A really interesting series of events being put on as part of the Garden for Tomorrow Festival. Excited to be part of a discussion on the rights of nature later, hosted by @LawForNature, and with the excellent @LucyGavaghan also presenting. Come along! tinyurl.com/3jt83vvd

Today @CambridgeUP announced the launch of #PublicHumanities, a new journal at the intersection of humanities scholarship and public life. ✅ Open Access ✅ Peer Reviewed ✅ Of the Moment ✅ Rigorous Research ✅ Accessible Writing Spread the word! cambridge.org/core/journals/…

This is a really accessible guide for anyone who (like me) is interested in the Rights of Nature but isn't a legal expert.

Council debates whether river can have rights kentonline.co.uk/maidstone/news…

The right to camp on Dartmoor has been restored by the Court of Appeal in Darwall v DNPA! This is a fantastic success for everyone who fought & campaigned so hard, & should now be a springboard for Parliament to legislate for a general Right to Roam & Camp theguardian.com/environment/20…

Hot album cover! Feat. @MisakCheryl, @Left_Hegelian, @RobertTalisse, @MathiasGIREL, @Neil_W_Williams, Jesse Prinz, Gary Hatfield, Francesca Bordogna, Claudine Tiercelin, Philip Kitcher, Trevor Pearce, Jeremy Dunham, Ignas Skrupskelis, Yumiko Inukai, and more. @OUPPhilosophy

Great conversation with UK rights of rivers activists & grassroots local communities rep @DartingtonTrust , thanks @RoehamptonUni for the support to organise this and for @LawForNature contributions, and thanks to my fellow comrade @Neil_W_Williams for organising this

Check our new interdisciplinary review article Understanding the Rights of Nature: Working Together Across and Beyond Disciplines - in free open access at rdcu.be/deRlH @Neil_W_Williams

Please RT 😡🤯😡🤯 Our VC gave us a guarantee of no CRs – last week, she went back on her word. @UniKent have started CR consultations, but we're fighting back! Pls support us by signing our petition. We can't let senior mgmt get away with this betrayal! chng.it/TbCjwkjf

brilliant take down of why private water companies pump raw sewage into the sea by Ash Sarkar #bbcqt 🔥

I doubt 1 in 100 people understand the new powers the police have been given and what they mean. They are deadly to democracy and free expression. This week's column. theguardian.com/commentisfree/…

Finally got round to listening to this great conversation between @Saunders_Joe and Jim Baxter on the @EthicsUntangled podcast. An insightful chat about the ethics of social media which, if you’re reading this on here, you should probably go and listen to!

Many thanks to the @BritishAcademy_ and @SusannaWesleyFd for enabling the trip. Shout out to my brilliant colleagues and travel companions @jeremie_gilbert and Saskia Vermeylen. To find out more about this and our other projects, see natureandrights.org. (3/3)

Due to the generosity of everyone we met, we have returned with a better awareness of the legal and cultural context which led to these entities being recognised as legal persons in ANZ, and with inspiration to engage with the emerging RoN initiatives in the UK and Europe (2/3)

A philosopher, a lawyer, and an anthropologist walk into a forest. Not the start of a joke, but the end of a research trip to Aotearoa New Zealand. Over a month, we camped, tramped, and canoed our way to meetings with academics, representatives, and rights-bearing entities. (1/3)

The Interdisciplinary Network on the Study of the Rights of Nature officially exists and has a swanky new website (natureandrights.org). Do get in contact if you're interested in discussing RoN with a group of keen and friendly scholars from a range of disciplines.

Every time there's an England match, I can tell because my neighbour listens to 'Vindaloo' by Fat Les at absolutely top volume. Considering the modest ambition of the lyric 'we're gonna score one more than you,' he sure does yell it enthusiastically.

Brought dice into the classroom today as part of a seminar exercise. I have never seen these students more engaged. All subsequent seminars will now be replaced by an ongoing D&D campaign.