Contribution short abstract:

Restoration is a key concept to environmental damage, yet its application—whether to ecosystems or community dynamics—is fraught with complexity. This paper explores how activists, academics, and local communities re(define) knowledges and practices with a particular focus on the RoN framework.

Contribution long abstract:

The Rights of Nature (RoN) framework has sparked ongoing debates, both theoretical and practical, regarding its implementation. More than 15 years after its adoption in the Ecuadorian Constitution, the framework continues to face challenges arising from misunderstandings, misinformation, and competing political agendas. Nonetheless, RoN provides a critical platform for stakeholders to address socioecological issues. This further establishes a foundation for social initiatives to engage in the commoning of resources and the collective meanings of life.

In 2020, a coalition of RoN advocates and academics launched a training program designed to prepare community leaders as courtroom experts. This training emphasized not only navigating the legal process during RoN lawsuits but also addressing the aftermath of successful litigation. Key questions include: How can ancestral practices and knowledge systems contribute to restoring fragile ecosystems? What actionable measures can be taken to repair damaged human–non-human relationships? If full restoration is unattainable, to what extent are expectations being reframed or obscured?

The collaboration between community leaders, activists, and researchers offers a unique opportunity for collective knowledge production concerning RoN and environmental legal frameworks. Given Ecuador's postcolonial history, it is crucial to explore how diverse forms of knowledge influence discourse, whose perspectives are deemed legitimate, and the strategies historically marginalized communities employ when advocating for RoN or collective rights.