Overview

In 2016, Colombia introduced the concept of biocultural rights into its Constitution; an unprecedented legal development that has since shaped environmental and human rights discourse both nationally and internationally. An important moment in this shift was the recognition of the Atrato River as a subject of rights, establishing a legal mechanism to protect not only the ecosystem itself but also the Afro-Colombian communities whose cultural and spiritual identities are deeply intertwined with the river. This book explores the challenges of implementing biocultural rights in countries with weak governance structures. Legal recognition alone proves insufficient in contexts where state control is fragmented and power is often exercised by corporations, armed groups, and illicit networks. Addressing biocultural diversity requires engaging with cultural dimensions such as identity, worldviews, philosophical assumptions, and moral frameworks. Through an in-depth analysis of the Atrato River case, the 3Hs framework of biocultural ethics is applied to interconnect historical, biophysical, cultural, and political dimensions. This approach reveals the potential of biocultural rights to foster more equitable and sustainable forms of coexistence between human and other-than-human communities. Offering a critical perspective on legal innovation in fragile states, this book provides valuable insights for advancing biocultural conservation and transitioning toward governance models that support the flourishing of biocultural diversity.

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9783032125972

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Valentina González-Morales is a Colombian environmental philosopher whose research focuses on biocultural ethics and the rights of nature, with a particular emphasis on the intersection of ecological and socio-environmental justice. In 2022, she earned her Ph.D. in Philosophy from the prestigious program in environmental philosophy, University of North Texas, USA, and later she joined the Department of Philosophy, Universidad de Cartagena, Colombia, where she is Assistant Professor. González-Morales’s academic work bridges philosophical traditions, drawing on both Western and Indigenous worldviews to propose situated, intercultural, and systemic frameworks for understanding human and other-than-human relationships. Her current work analyzes the case of the Atrato River in Colombia—recognized as a legal subject by the Constitutional Court through ruling T-622/16—through the lens of biocultural ethics, introducing the 3Hs (Habitats, Habits, and co-inhabitants) heuristic model to assess biocultural rights. In addition to her academic writing, she brings years of teaching experience at both the secondary and higher education levels, and remains committed to community-engaged scholarship, particularly in dialogue with Afro-Colombian and Indigenous communities affected by environmental degradation and systemic violence.

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