The Owners

Incoming Editorial Team·Verified June 5, 2026

The 'Rights of Nature' movement, which legally guarantees nature's right to exist, thrive, and regenerate, is spreading globally. A prime example is New Zealand's Whanganui River, which was granted legal personhood equal to that of a human. By exploring the Whanganui River and Mount Taranaki in New Zealand, we examine what lessons can be drawn for the current initiative to institutionalize 'eco-legal personhood' for the Jeju Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin—the first of its kind in South Korea. Ultimately, this leads us to reflect deeply on how we should connect and forge relationships with nature.