The United Kingdom’s crackdown on climate protesters is setting a “dangerous” global precedent, according to the UK Director of Human Rights Watch (HRW) Yasmine Ahmed, reported The Guardian.
British authorities are undermining democratic rights, particularly the right to protest peacefully, according to HRW’s World Report 2025.
“Many of us had hoped that an incoming Labour government would have repealed the undemocratic anti-protest legislation introduced under the previous administration, especially given Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s background as a human rights lawyer,” Ahmed said in a press release from HRW. “That they have chosen not to, and are instead defending these measures in court, beggars belief. Peaceful protest is a cornerstone of a healthy and functioning democracy.”
The 546-page report examined human rights practices in more than 100 countries. In many places, governments took action to stop, wrongfully arrest and imprison activists, political opponents and journalists. Civilians were unlawfully killed by government forces and armed groups and driven from their homes while access to humanitarian aid was blocked.
“In many of the more than 70 national elections in 2024, authoritarian leaders gained ground with their discriminatory rhetoric and policies,” HRW said.
In “a huge victory for democracy” in May of 2024, the UK’s High Court deemed some anti-protest measures unlawful. However, the incoming Labour government appealed the ruling in December.
“We’re at a stage where we’re talking about the… dangerous hypocrisy of what the UK government is saying and doing, and also the fact that the international community and the UN have [raised] and continue to raise the alarm about how this UK government responds to protest, and in particular climate protest,” Ahmed said, as The Guardian reported.
The new Labour government has not amended or repealed the Public Order Act 2023, which has been called “deeply troubling legislation” by Volker Türk, United Nations high commissioner for human rights, the press release said. Nor has it amended or repealed the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022. Both laws give the police much greater authority, while at the same time undermining democratic rights to peaceful assembly and freedom of speech.
The overall effect of the laws has been to make participating in climate activism progressively more risky, so that fewer people want to take the chance of potential legal consequences, reported The Guardian.
“They have introduced laws which mean that the circumstances where the police can interfere and stop protesters are now much more expansive than they were,” Ahmed said, as The Guardian reported. “So for example, lowering thresholds around what is considered serious disruption; introducing noise level thresholds and disruption levels around noise; introducing orders that, before any crime has actually been committed, essentially prevent protesters from being able to engage with others that may be involved in protests, [from] engaging online; and then also changing penalties [for some offences] from what would have been fines to now possible imprisonment.”
A total of 34 climate protesters were jailed in the UK in 2024, said Tim Crosland, co-founder of Defend Our Juries. Five Just Stop Oil activists were given the longest jail sentences ever for non-violent protest actions — four and five years — for “conspiracy to cause a public nuisance,” following a video call concerning a protest on the M25 expressway, reported The Guardian.
The sentences came just after the Labour government was elected, and on the heels of what HRW said was “more than a decade of backsliding on human rights” by the Labour government’s Conservative predecessors.
According to HRW, additional human rights concerns include hate speech and xenophobia; failure to sufficiently address racial discrimination along with continuing colonial legacies, the cost of living crisis and challenges to the establishment of a “humane and rights respecting migration system.”
“We live in incredibly uncertain times and now, more than ever, we need leaders who are going to stand up for the rule of law and our rights and freedoms,” Ahmed said in the press release. “How can the UK expect to be taken seriously when criticizing crackdowns in Moscow, Beijing, or Tehran, while spending thousands of pounds of taxpayers’ money to clamp down on peaceful protests at home, including on climate protesters.”
The post Human Rights Watch Accuses UK of Undermining Democratic Rights With Crackdown on Climate Protesters appeared first on EcoWatch.
https://www.ecowatch.com/uk-climate-protesters-human-rights-watch.html
Thoreau wrote in Walden that “Time is but the stream I go a-fishing in,” which reminds us that life is short and nature fills it beautifully. What are you looking for that can’t be found during an afternoon in nature?
Earth911 inspirations. Post them, share your desire to help people think of the planet first, every day. Click the poster to get a larger image.
The post Earth911 Inspiration: Time Is but the Stream appeared first on Earth911.
https://earth911.com/inspire/earth911-inspiration-time-is-but-the-stream/
Green Living
Classic Sustainability In Your Ear: The Ocean River Institute’s Natural Lawn Challenge for Climate Action
Turn back the clock with this classic interview that will get you ready for Spring yard care planning. A lawn may be beautiful but it can take a heavy toll on the environment, accounting for between 30% and 60% of residential water use in the United States. Rob Moir, Ph.D., is president and executive director of the Ocean River Institute in Cambridge, Massachusetts. ORI works with residential lawn owners to heal damaged ecosystems by restoring coastal areas to lessen the destructive impacts of climate change. The benefits of a natural lawn reach far beyond reduced local water pollution, eliminating chemicals that can contribute to cancers, diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, and other cellular diseases. Natural lawns are also better for local pollinators and store much more carbon than heavily fertilized lawns. If you considered removing your lawn to play a part in the battle against climate change, this interview may change your mind — a healthy lawn is a powerful carbon sink.
The Ocean River Institute is recruiting Massachusetts communities, town by town, to take a pledge to follow natural lawn practices in the Healthy Soils for Climate Restoration Challenge. You don’t need to live in Massachusetts to participate and learn about the alternatives to the traditional, chemical-intensive lawn practices that use Roundup, a source of glyphosates that kills soil-dwelling fungi and local pollinators, and fast-acting nitrogen fertilizers. You can learn more about the Ocean River Institute at www.oceanriver.org.
Rob has contributed many articles about climate change and the history of environmental change since this interview, including:
- Finding a Northwest Passage to the Sea
- Turning the Tide—How Land and Water Shape Our Climate Future
- Learning from Captain Scoresby’s Ten-gallon Fir-Cask
- Earth Savvy?
- Let the Ground Keep Falling Rainwater
- The Sultans of Swag Versus Looking at Clouds from Both Sides Now
- Subscribe to Sustainability in Your Ear on iTunes and Apple Podcasts.
- Follow Sustainability in Your Ear on Spreaker, iHeartRadio, or YouTube
Editor’s Note: This episode originally aired on May 30, 2022.
The post Classic Sustainability In Your Ear: The Ocean River Institute’s Natural Lawn Challenge for Climate Action appeared first on Earth911.
https://earth911.com/podcast/earth911-podcast-the-ocean-river-institutes-natural-lawn-challenge-for-climate-action/
Choosing your perfect gown can be one of the most exciting decisions for your special day, but for the eco fashionista, it can be a challenge to find a dress that fits your values and style — but these brands have exceptional sustainable wedding dresses you’ll swoon over!
Using earth-minded materials like hemp, cruelty-free peace silk, deadstock recycled fabrics and vintage lace, and producing consciously, either in small batches or handcrafting each individual piece made-to-order, the brands below meet high standards for transparency, ecological sustainability, and fair labor.
[For more sustainable wedding dresses, check out this guide to secondhand wedding dress sites!]
Note that the guide contains affiliate links. As always, we only feature brands that meet strict criteria for sustainability we love, that we think you’ll love too!
1. Christy Dawn
Dreamy dress brand Christy Dawn does not disappoint with their romantic bridal collection! Each piece is more swoon-worthy than the next.
Their three sustainable bridal gowns are made from regenerative silk charmeuse —sourced through BOMBYX, an innovative silk producer using best practices — and colored in a beautiful pearl silk with non-toxic dyes. Each dress is ethically cut and sewn by makers in Los Angeles earning living wages, as with the rest of Christy Dawn’s collections.
The Britta Dress and Fitzgerald Dress are 1920s inspired while the Athena Dress is a more modern (but equally romantic) option. All of these dresses are made-to-order with an estimated timeline of 4 weeks.
Conscious Qualities: Regenerative silk and organic non-toxic dyes, ethically made-to-order in Los Angeles
Price Range: $2,500 – $3,000
Size Range: XS – XL
2. Pure Magnolia
Blending the traditional with the modern, Pure Magnolia designs classic-inspired sustainable wedding dresses with contemporary touches. And each dress is made in their Canadian studio by seamstresses earning fair wages from eco-fabrics, such as organic cotton and hemp silk.
The brand sources recycled fabrics whenever possible as well, and recycles their scrap fabric through FABCYCLE.
Conscious Qualities: Eco-friendly fabrics, locally and fairly made, recycles scrap fabrics
Price Range: $845 – $3,300 CAD
Size Range: 0 – 28
3. Lost in Paris
Lost in Paris crafts each of their creatively designed bohemian-inspired gowns ethically in their Sydney, Australia studio. Unconventional yet undeniably striking, Lost in Paris’ dresses are made from vintage lace and cotton.
Investing in a dress from Lost in Paris is seamless — the brand offers at-home sample try-ons, offers train and sleeve adjustments on several styles, ships their dresses worldwide for free, and even accepts returns. Oh, and, if one of their ready-made sizes doesn’t work for you, you can get a dress designed to your measurements.
Conscious Qualities: Made-to-order model, uses vintage lace, locally made
Price Range: $950 – $3900 AUD
Size Range: XXS – XXL + custom sizing options
For More Slow Fashion Content:
4. Wear Your Love
Wear Your Love creates feminine, effortless dresses in their Northern California studio that are — in contrast to the majority of wedding dresses on the market — actually comfortable! The brand’s free-spirited designs are made with soft, earth-minded fabrics like organic cotton and each dress is made to order for each bride to their exact measurements.
There are also customizations available for each eco-friendly wedding dress such as train or no train, skirt or sleeve linings, back coverage, skirt style, and more.
Conscious Qualities: Eco-friendly fabrics, made-to-order model, locally and transparently made
Price Range: $680 – $1,700
Size Range: N/A; dresses are made to your measurements
5. Larimeloom
Based in Reggio Emilia, Italy, Larimeloom crafts exceptional custom-made dresses by hand in their atelier. The brand creates comfortable minimalist dresses from durable natural fabrics and colors them with natural or non-toxic dyes.
Larimeloom has also implemented zero waste design techniques, cutting their patterns strategically in order to minimize fabric waste.
Conscious Qualities: Made-to-order model, zero-waste designs, natural fabrics and dyes
Price Range: 650€ – 2,650€
Size Range: XS – XL
6. Sister Organics
Sourcing quality earth-friendly natural fabrics like organic hemp and cotton, Sister Organics creates classic, eco-friendly wedding dresses for UK-based brides.
Each dress is made to order in England, so you can select a pre-defined size, customize the length of a size, or get an entirely different dress made for your measurements.
Conscious Qualities: Eco-friendly fabrics, made-to-order model
Price Range: £125 – £390
Size Range: XXS – XXL + custom sizing
7. Indiebride London
Indiebride’s vintage-inspired sustainable wedding dresses are delicate and romantic yet free-spirited, offering a unique collection for the bride that wants to skip the conventional wedding gown and choose a piece that fits their individual style.
The brand’s conscious wedding dresses are handmade in London using majority natural fibers and can be altered or customized to your specifications.
Conscious Qualities: Made-to-order model, uses many natural fabrics, locally made
Price Range: £1,200 – £1,700
Size Range: 8 – 16 (UK sizes)
More Resources For Your Eco Wedding:
10 Secondhand Wedding Dress Sites for the Eco Bride
7 Ethical Lab-Grown Diamond Engagement and Wedding Rings
17 Brands with Conscious Dresses (great options for bridesmaid dresses in here!)
The post 7 Best Sustainable Wedding Dresses for Your Special Day appeared first on Conscious Life & Style.
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