Mar Menor activist wins Green Nobel Prize
Teresa Vicente drove the campaign to grant the Mar Menor its own legal personality status
Murcia-born Teresa Vicente, head of the Popular Legislative Initiative (ILP) and one of the driving forces behind the campaign to recognise the Mar Menor as its own legal entity, has been honoured with this year’s prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize, also dubbed the ‘Green Nobel’.
Esteemed worldwide, this accolade celebrates grassroots champions and pioneering figures safeguarding the natural world.
Selected from approximately 100 candidates, Vicente ranks among six other activists receiving the distinction for her outstanding commitment to nature conservation.
Ms Vicente has led “a historic campaign to save the ecosystem of the Mar Menor, the largest saltwater lagoon in Europe, from collapse, which led to the approval of a new law in September 2022 that grants the lagoon unique legal rights,” an awards spokesperson said.
The Law for the recognition of legal personality of the Mar Menor is the culmination of a long journey that began in 2019, after the first great anoxia episode, which led to the massive death of the fauna and flora of the lagoon.“Despite the fact that the experts told her it was impossible, Teresa did not give up,” emphasised the awarding body, who described the Murcia law professor as “a lawyer of nature”.
The rule that grants legal personality to the lagoon establishes the right to the conservation of its species and habitats, protection against harmful activities and repair of environmental damage.
Thanks to Ms Vicente’s tireless work and the support of hundreds of thousands of people from all across Spain, the Mar Menor is now the first ecosystem in Europe to enjoy these legal rights.
The Green Noble “signifies an international recognition that we are facing a new stage in humanity,” Ms Vicente said.
It’s a stage where “human beings understand they are part of nature. And this recognition means that it is not a local or national conquest, but rather a European and international one.
“They call the Mar Menor the lagoon of magic,” she added, “and all of us on this journey have seen a lot of magic.”
Images: Goldman Environmental Prize
