ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the nature of vegetal life, presenting an argument for why the law should take plants seriously as beings deserving of legal recognition and protection. Starting at least during the time of the Enlightenment, rationalist science and philosophy have predominantly conceived of plants as passive objects. The practice of treating plants as persons would implicate a re-examination of the instrumental approach that humans predominantly follow when interacting with vegetal life. Early advocacy in favour of recognising nature as a legal subject materialised as part of the environmental movement in the United States of America. The constitutional recognition of the rights of nature in Ecuador provided a basis for the remaking of several national legislative and regulatory frameworks in ways that attempted to actualise an eco-centric approach to lawmaking. The chapter concludes by contending that laws which govern plants as intellectual property or genetic resources should draw inspiration from the legal recognition of the rights of nature.
