Law, Nature and the Ecosystem Approach: Rationale for the Volume

This introduction sets out the conceptual framework for a volume exploring how law can respond to the ecological crisis through an ecosystem approach. It situates the depletion of the Earth’s biocapacity within the broader need to rethink the social, cultural, political and economic assumptions underpinning contemporary legal systems. Moving beyond approaches that treat environmental protection as a discrete regulatory concern, it examines how ecological interdependence and the functioning of the Earth system can inform legal principles and institutions. The introduction frames the volume’s contributions as a dialogue across legal traditions and cultural perspectives, exploring the foundations of a transcultural and transnational legal paradigm capable of safeguarding the biogeochemical conditions that sustain life on Earth.