It is against the law to steal from or hurt other people, and it is against the law to kill another person.  But, is it against the law to destroy thousands of trees and the wildlife that depend on them?


What is Ecocide?

Flickr - Foreign and Commonwealth Office - CC BY ND 2.0The word ecocide is made by combining 'eco', which has its roots in the ancient Greek word 'oikos', meaning house or the Latin word 'oeco' meaning 'household' and which over the years has come to mean 'habitat' or 'environment';  ' -cide' comes from the Latin verb 'caedere', meaning 'to cut down' or 'to kill'.  A more familiar word -  'homicide' - means the killing of a human being, with 'homo' in Latin meaning 'a man'.  Ecocide is a crime against ecosystems.  At the moment there is no such law preventing crimes that can be called ecocide. 

Read More: Examples of Ecocide

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