Society for Earth Law
Reflection on MLK, Jr. Day
Linda Wendling, Executive Director
I believe that it is not a coincidence that on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, I am looking forward to meeting the Buddhist monks who are on a Walk for Peace . These venerable monks are walking 2,300 miles from Fort Worth, Texas to Washington, DC to promote awareness of peace, kindness, and compassion across the United States and around the world. Their hopeful and peaceful journey is the living embodiment of MLK’s speech “Where Do We Go From Here?” delivered at the 11th Convention of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference on August 16, 1967, in Atlanta, GA:
Now, we got to get this thing right. What is needed is a realization that power without love is reckless and abusive, and that love without power is sentimental and anemic. Power at its best is love implementing the demands of justice, and justice at its best is love correcting everything that stands against love. And this is what we must see as we move on.
I know that many of us working in this new and small organization we call SOEL have had their doubts about how much SOEL can do. But take heart from these words of the venerable monks who know that:
Everything that has ever mattered began with something impossibly small. A single seed. A first mindful breath. A quiet decision to take one step, then another.
Therefore, it is our duty as dedicated members of the Society for Earth Law, to not only hold this sentiment in our hearts, but also to actively work every day “slowly, gently, persistently—not through grand gestures but through ten thousand small acts of love— [knowing] we can help make the world more peaceful.” Each step the monks take, each action SOEL takes, are full of the power to bring justice into the world because each are motivated by love beyond ourselves.
MISSION
The mission of the Society for Earth Law is to transform law for an ecological age based on the meta-principles of relationality, reciprocity, and responsibility.
VISION
Earth Law calls for a holistic way of caring for all life and all that supports life on Earth. We envision a world in which legal, economic, social, and governance systems foster collective commitment to nurturing, regenerating, and sustaining our Earth community at local, bioregional, national, and planetary levels.
Origins:
Our Story of Becoming
Why We Exist
Earth is not just a set of resources to be used. Earth is our home—the place that gives us life, feeds us, gives us air to breathe and water to drink. We share Earth with other species. Earth’s interacting, dynamic, and natural systems make all life possible. But today, we are at a crossroads. We are failing to address climate change, biodiversity loss, and the health of our forests, oceans, rivers, and soils. While there are many inter-human problems, those concerning human-Earth relations are primary. Many people feel powerless, like they have no say in the decisions shaping their future. Big corporations and the ultra-wealthy exercise control of our governments, economies, and legal system across the world. They have tried to convince us that their way is the only way—that we must choose between jobs and a healthy planet, between security and fairness, between energy and a stable climate, between sustenance and regenerative agriculture. These are false choices.
We believe the law should serve all of us, not just the powerful. Our legal systems now favor property, profit, and accumulation of wealth at the expense of sufficiency for all and protection of Earth—the foundation of life itself.
Our Approach
The Society for Earth Law (SOEL) seeks to operate at a transformative scale—not merely addressing the symptoms of environmental and social degradation but also developing a transformative new paradigm for overall health and well-being. SOEL challenges the old paradigms of the existing legal, economic, and cultural power structures. We aim to reflect the diversity of humanity in our membership, chapters, and leadership. We intend to promote interdisciplinary scholarship, with widespread collaboration as a pillar of our efforts. SOEL recognizes the wisdom of Indigenous laws, customs, and practices as vital. We will value and incorporate this wisdom as well as the wisdom of women, of science, of classical humanistic and religious traditions, and of contemporary thought in our efforts to care for Earth and develop Earth Law. By building a new intellectual and legal infrastructure for ecological health and well-being, we seek to heal humanity's relationship with Earth and bring into being a true sense of Earth community. We do this from the perspective of Thomas Berry’s famous principles: “The universe is a communion of subjects, not a collection of objects;” and “Ecology is not a part of law, law is an extension of ecology.”
Take Action
Ready to take the next step? You can become a contributor to our cause, or participate yourself.