ELC Inspires: Q&A with Water Advocacy Director Dr. Leonard
To make real change, all voices must be heard. At Earth Law Center, we strive to bring together passionate and seasoned experts from all domains of Nature. Water rights is one of the centers of our work, and for that we are grateful to have the help of Dr. Kelsey Leonard, a water scientist, legal scholar, policy expert, writer, and enrolled citizen of the Shinnecock Nation, and an assistant professor at the University of Waterloo. Her journey will inspire those interested in practicing environmental law, and who want to orient their work towards the Rights of Nature principles.
A Confluence of Energy
Water has long been a special force in Dr. Leonard’s life. First earning her Master of Science in Water Science Policy and Management from the University of Oxford, she went on to earn her JD in environmental law at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh.
Duquesne University in Pittsburgh is quite unique in the sense that the city is built at the confluence of three major rivers in the United States: the Allegheny, Monongahela and Ohio join here. Even leaders from across the globe, like the Dalai Lama have remarked that this confluence holds a powerful energy. For Dr. Leonard, it holds a special meaning.
“This unique space of three rivers meeting was also very formative to how I understand environmental law and environmental justice. Not only is it a natural wonder of the confluence of three major rivers, but it's also an area that has been heavily degraded and polluted over centuries of industrialization, in one of America's steel belt cities.”
After her experience in Pittsburgh, she went on to earn her PhD in Political Science from McMaster University. Her experiences in Pittsburgh helped form her PhD research:
“I explored PhD programs where I could research and create the foundation of literature to which the courts could turn to inform their decision making on those cases of first impression.
What that means is that the court has never seen something in that area of law before, so they have to consider secondary literature to inform their decision. What I found at the time, particularly in the case of Indigenous water law, was that there just really wasn't a lot of secondary literature.”
Who is Water?
Through her research working with Indigenous Peoples and non-Indigenous Peoples, she noticed a difference in the approach to Nature starts with communication and values:
“I was starting to hear from Indigenous water protectors about the struggle they had with communication with their non-Indigenous allies. They would say that we (Indigenous People) are relating to the water as a being that is living, that has its own spirit, that is its own entity. We say, ‘Who is water?’. And yet, when they spoke to their non-Indigenous counterpart it was as if they were speaking a different language, they were talking about water as a ‘What?,’ as a commodity, as a resource, as something to be consumed, with no context or concern for the inherent rights of water as a living being in and of itself.”
A voice for water
Raising Consciousness
All this led Dr. Leonard to create more of these reflexive conversations, eventually leading to a TED Talk: Why Lakes and Rivers Should Have the Same Rights as Humans.
“That's how I came into contact with Earth Law Center. I am trying to continue to promote that messaging, and find those spaces of confluence, just like the rivers, where we are able to come into conversation across societies and across jurisdictions to do better for the water.”
Dr. Leonard has advice for others in the legal or political science fields who want to get involved:
“lf others are looking to contribute (one area to work on) is to develop case studies and best practices for the implementation of Rights of Nature in the context of freshwater and ocean systems.”
Earth Law Center is proud to have leaders like Dr. Leonard on our team, and hope that you’ll consider joining our mission. If you want to make a difference in how humanity approaches and interacts with Nature, you can get involved with the organization by donating your skills and time. You can also make a financial donation through our website.
