This is not a trial

THIS IS NOT A TRIAL is a theatrical experiment that invites you to become part of the urgent conversation on how can we, as a society can assign accountability for environmental destruction. On 18 and 19 June a group of artists, actors and students from Utrecht University will stage a fictional trial at the ZIMIHC theater Stefanus in Utrecht (Overvecht) and you will be the jury. 

In a fictional future where ecocide has been incorporated into criminal law, a groundbreaking trial takes place. In the dock: the Dutch multinational Smit Refineries N.V. and its CEO. They stand accused of large-scale devastation of an Indonesian ecosystem where nickel and other rare earth metals are extracted. These resources are vital to the green energy transition – but their extraction comes at a high cost: the destruction of biodiversity hotspots, the extinction of unique species, and the displacement of Indigenous communities.

What would it mean to prosecute ecocide in a court of law? Can the law bring justice to local communities and ecosystems, including birds, trees and other nonhumans? And who should be held accountable in this chain of destruction?

Blurred lines between law and art

THIS IS NOT A TRIAL brings together legal argumentation and alternative perspectives through art. A central concern of this theatrical experiment is how to include more-than-human voices in a creative and interactive way. The audience is invited to participate and deliberate on a verdict and to reflect on what justice might mean in an age of environmental crisis.

Verdict and Roundtable Conversation

On 26 June at 18.00-19.30, the Conceptualizing Ecocide team invites you to a public conversation hosted at the Utrecht University Library City Center (Drift 27, Room 0.21). There we will deliver the verdict according to your vote and discuss preliminary findings from the survey. This will be followed by a short roundtable conversation with members of the project team and special guests, and you will also have the opportunity to ask questions and share your thoughts.

The event will be moderated by Cedric Ryngaert (UU), and speakers will include Tina Venema (UU), Antoinette Sprenger (IUCN NL), Carolina Sánchez-De Jaegher (UU), Susanne Knittel (UU), Luna Frank (UU).

Our special guests are SeMUel Sahureka (Saka Mese Nusa AllifURU foundation) and Fadjar Schouten-Korwa (Expert in International Law, Human Rights, Papua Support Foundation).

Partners and creators

THIS IS NOT A TRIAL was developed by Utrecht University researchers and students as part of the interdisciplinary Conceptualizing Ecocide project in collaboration with NGOs and artists. Together, we explore the role that law could play in facing one of the greatest challenges of our time.

Partners

• EcoJustice (formerly known as Stop Ecocide NL)
• International Union for the Conservation of Nature, National Committee of The Netherlands, Bottom Line Project 
• Partij voor de Dieren 
• Writer and theater director Reinier Noordzij (script)
• Author and vocal artist Emma Zuiderveen 
• Pollif Projects – performance artists Tim Hammer and Mirthe Dokter

With support from

• Pathways to Sustainability, Utrecht University
• Centre for Science and Culture, Utrecht University
• Network for Environmental Humanities, Utrecht University