Environmental Constitutionalism in the Anthropocene : Values, Principles and Actions

This book examines the relationship between man and nature through different cultural approaches to encourage new environmental legislation as a means of fostering acceptance at a local level.

In 2019, the International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS) recognised that we have entered a new era, the Anthropocene, specifically characterised by the impact of one species, mankind, on environmental change. The Anthropocene is penetrating the discourse of both hard sciences and humanities and social sciences, by posing new epistemological as well as practical challenges to many disciplines. Legal sciences have so far been at the margins of this intellectual renewal, with few contributions on the central role that the notion of Anthropocene could play in forging a more effective and just environmental law. By applying a multidisciplinary approach and adopting a Law as Culture paradigm to the study of law, this book explores new paths of investigation and possible solutions to be applied. New perspectives for the constitutional framing of environmental policies, rights, and alternative methods for bottom-up participatory law-making and conflict resolution are investigated, showing that environmental justice is not just an option, but an objective within reach.

The book will be essential reading for students, academics, and policymakers in the areas of law, environmental studies and anthropology.

Domenico Amirante is Full Professor of Italian and Comparative Public Law, Director of the Ph.D. Program in Comparative Law and Processes of Integration; Director of the Triennial Course in Political Science, Faculty of Political Science, University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli. He was Director of the Ph.D. Program on Italian and Comparative Public and Environmental Law, University of Naples II from 2001 to 2010. He has been appointed as expert member within the project for the Global Pact for the Environment. He has also been appointed by the Italian Ministry of the Environment as expert member of the Commission for Environmental Amendments to the Italian Constitution.

Silvia Bagni is Associate Professor of Comparative Public Law, Faculty of Political and Social Sciences, University of Bologna. She has a Ph.D. in Constitutional Law from the University of Bologna and an MA in Bioethics from the UPRA, Rome. She is an expert for the Harmony with Nature Program, Panel 1, Earth-centered Law, United Nations and a member of the Alma Mater Research Institute on Global Challenges and Climate Change.