Join us for AELA's "Exploring Bioregioning" webinar series!
In our April webinar AELA Convenor and Greenprints creator, Dr Michelle Maloney will be joined by Karie Crisp, to discuss some of the concepts they explored in their recent co-authored chapter: "Bioregions and Earth Laws".
In this webinar, Michelle and Karie will discuss the origins of 'bioregionalism' and 'bioregioning' in Western cultures, and how bioregioning offers a proven way to build successful, sustainable human societies. They will discuss how the ancient and continuing governance systems of First Nations Peoples in Australia, and around the world, offer inspiration for a place-based, ecocentric legal and governance system; and they explore how current Western law could be changed, to build a fairer and more ecologically healthy society. Don't miss this important webinar, discussing current and future possibilities for rethinking and reshaping modern human societies and our legal systems.
WHAT IS 'BIOREGIONING'?
Bioregioning is a Western term that sees human societies and culture as part of nature, and proposes that modern human societies can be more sustainable, successful and meaningful, if our political, cultural and economic systems are organised within natural boundaries such as bioregions and catchments (watersheds). While First Nations Peoples have practiced bioregional and biocultural governance for millennia, many modern industrialised societies are only now rediscovering and experimenting with bioregioning, and learning how nature can be a guide for sustainable human societies.
'Exploring Bioregioning' is part of AELA's Greenprints program, and features guest speakers from diverse backgrounds, disciplines and bioregions, sharing research, insights and stories from around Australia and around the world. Our goal is to show how bioregioning offers important pathways to create Earth-centred systems change.
ABOUT OUR SPEAKERS
KARIE CRISP
Karie Crisp is a scholar-activist at the California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS) researching the history and resurgence of the bioregional movement. She is a co-organizer of the 11th Turtle Island Bioregional Congress (TIBC11), taking place September 15–19, 2026 in Vernonia, Oregon, within the Cascadia bioregion. She co-produced the short documentary, The Future is Bioregional, and with Michelle Maloney, co-authored the chapter “Bioregions and Earth Law” in the second edition of Earth Law: Emerging Ecocentric Law—A Guide for Practitioners. She previously worked in corporate sustainability before turning toward philosophy, Earth Law, and bioregional governance.
MICHELLE MALONEY
Dr Michelle Maloney (PhD) is an Earth lawyer and advocate for ecocentric and bioregional governance. She is recognised internationally and in Australia for her work advocating for Earth centred law and governance, including First Laws and the Rights of Nature. Michelle is Co-Founder and Director of the Australian Earth Laws Alliance (AELA), and Co-Founder and Director of Future Dreaming, an Indigenous led organisation that works to share Indigenous ecological and governance knowledge with non-Indigenous people and organisations in Australia. She is a passionate advocate for bioregional governance, and her work with Kombu-merri Elder, Dr Mary Graham, explores how Australian society could be transformed by following Indigenous leadership and bioregional governance approaches. For more information about Michelle's work, publications and affiliations, please visit: www.michellemaloney.au
ABOUT GREENPRINTS
Greenprints is a framework for building the foundations of bioregional governance. It has been designed to make it easier for people - especially people living in industrialised and Western societies – to understand how to build sustainable/regenerative futures, by first understanding local ecological systems and using those systems to guide human societies and economies. Greenprints draws on bioregionalism and 'bioregioning' as key concepts for rethinking our personal, organisational and community wide governance systems.
ABOUT THE AUSTRALIAN EARTH LAWS ALLIANCE (AELA)
AELA is a not-for-profit organisation working to increase the understanding and practical implementation of Earth-centred (ecocentric) governance, with a focus on systems change across law, economics, education, ethics and community participation in Australia. AELA's vision is an Australian society that embraces an ecocentric or ‘life-centred’ culture, with governance systems that enable human communities to thrive within ecological boundaries, while nurturing biodiversity and ecosystem health. AELA's work includes education programs and project support for people, communities and organisations working to create ecocentric systems change.
For more information, visit our website: www.earthlaws.org.au
or email us anytime: aela@earthlaws.org.au