New Zealand has recognized Mount Taranaki, considered an ancestor by the Maori people, as a legal person. The new law means that the government will no longer have ownership over the mountain. This is the third element of nature to be granted legal personhood in New Zealand, following laws granting protection to the sacred Te Urewera Forest and the Whanganui River.

A legal entity has been created for the mountain, with a council consisting of four Maori members and four government-appointed representatives. The entity will have the right to sue to redress historical injustices.

New Zealand is not the only country to recognize elements of nature as legal beings. For example, in 2008 Ecuador provided legal rights for elements of nature in its constitution, the first country to do so.

In the U.S. the record has not been so positive for elements of nature. A novel lawsuit was filed in Florida in 2021 by a lake and other waterways to stop a development project that allegedly would pollute the waters. The suit was unsuccessful due to preemptive action taken by the Florida legislature after voters in the county overwhelmingly approved a charter amendment to permit elements of nature to sue to protect themselves. Wilde Cypress Branch et al. v. Fla. Dept. of Environmental Protection et al., Case No. 6D23-1412 (Fla. Sixth District Court of Appeal 2024). Learn more here.