Local Recognition of Rights Award
The Center for Democratic and Environmental Rights launched its Local Recognition of Rights Award program in 2020. The award recognizes local governments which adopt laws and policies expanding civil, democratic, and environmental rights at the municipal level.
2020
Right to be Free from Secondhand Smoke
The first recipient of the award was the City of Irvine, California, which adopted an ordinance banning smoking in all public places. In recognizing this legal right, Irvine became one of several hundred municipalities across the U.S. that have recognized new, emerging democratic, civil, and environmental rights at the local level. These new rights include the right to be free from exposure to synthetic pesticides, the right to be free from chemical trespass, the right to clean air and clean water, the right to sustainable agriculture, and the rights of ecosystems and nature.
2021
Rights of Nature
The 2021 Awards were given to Australia’s Blue Mountains Council, and Northern Ireland’s Derry City and Strabane Council and Fermanagh and Omagh District Council, for their policies on the rights of nature. The resolutions of the local governments begins a process of integrating the rights of nature into operational practices, planning processes, and long-term decision making.