Tonga Poised to Be the First Country to Recognize Rights of Whales

Inside Climate News · By Katie Surma · last updated June 10, 2025 – 1:59 PM

At the U.N. Ocean Conference, Tonga’s princess called for recognition of whales’ legal rights. The move is one of several rights of nature initiatives happening at the conference.

By Katie Surma

Tonga, a Pacific Island nation with deep connections to the ocean and its non-human inhabitants, could become the first country in the world to recognize that whales have inherent rights.

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