Burke Center Webinar: Wildlife as Property Owners: A New Conception of Animal Rights

Photo of Karen Bradshaw and Holly Doremus

Professors Karen Bradshaw of Arizona State University and Holly Doremus of the University of California at Berkeley discussed Professor Bradshaw’s new book Wildlife as Property Owners: A New Conception of Animal Rights in a webinar on March 1, 2021, sponsored by the Coleman P. Burke Center for Environmental Law. The webinar is available for on-demand viewing and for online CLE credit.

Bradshaw describes her book as “a radical proposal to re-imagine how we address [the] crisis of biodiversity loss.” During the webinar she emphasized that the federal Endangered Species Act and other conservation laws are not doing enough to combat biodiversity loss and new approaches are necessary. In Wildlife as Property Owners, she suggests one potential solution is to recognize species as property owners, so as to take advantage of the legal protections property ownership provides. 

Professor Doremus provided critical commentary on Bradshaw’s book, followed by discussion and audience Q & A. Doremus raised questions about the use of property institutions for wildlife conservation, including the role of trustees and how Bradshaw’s proposal would incorporate the needs of broader ecosystems upon which wildlife and ecological processes depend.

The program was moderated by Center Director Jonathan Adler, and was just one of a series of programs sponsored by the Burke Center intended to showcase different views and perspectives on environmental law. Additional programs will be highlighted on the Center’s website.