The week of Earth Day, April 22, 2011, the United Nations General Assembly discussed international standards that grant nature equal rights to humans. Similar protocols have been adopted by over a dozen U.S. municipalities, as well as Bolivia and Ecuador. Renowned environmentalists Maude Barlow and Vandana Shiva join us. Vandana Shiva says, "Most civilizations of the world, for most of human history, have seen the world in terms of relatedness and connection.  And if there’s one thing the rights of Mother Earth is waking us to, is: we are all connected."

Maude Barlow said, "We eventually want the Universal Declaration on the Rights of Mother Earth to be a companion piece to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights."

On Earth Day 2011, Democracy Now! spoke to Vandana Shiva, the prominent environmental leader, feminist and thinker from India about the nuclear catastrophe in Japan and what it has meant for India."We have a very, very strong anti-nuclear movement in India," Shiva said. The anti-nuclear movement has gained momentum recently over efforts to stop the construction of a new six-reactor nuclear power station on the coastal plains of Jaitapur, India, in an area known for mango and cashew production. On April 18, Indian police opened fire on hundreds of protesters at a demonstration against the nuclear power plant, killed one person. More than 20 people were arrested.