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To The Editor:

The fight against the Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP) taught us that when people work together, they can win. A group of ACP activists, who worked to defend Buckingham County against a proposed large-scale fracked gas compressor station, is taking that lesson and running with it.

We are launching the Virginia Community Rights Network to build a movement for structural change that secures political authority for local communities to protect ecosystem rights and build the sustainable future we want to see.

We need a system of community-based solutions that challenges the present system of harm. Facilitating systemic change by developing local solutions can put the interests of people and ecosystems above the interests of corporate profit.

In order to do this, we are aiming high, starting in the communities we live in by transforming Virginia’s outdated Dillon’s Rule doctrine. Rooted in local communities and the challenges they face, this movement builds local power to pass local law and revamp governance.

Communities need to be empowered to heighten protections for civil, human and ecosystem rights in the places where they live in order to actualize the dream of sustainability and climate health for the future.

The Rights of Nature movement is spreading around the world. Join us in bringing it to Virginia and your local community. To learn more visit vacommunityrights.org.

Mindy Zlotnick

Buckingham