This is international environmental innovation. A New Zealand river revered by the native Maori has been recognized by parliament as a “legal person”. The river will have its own legal identity with all the corresponding rights, duties and liabilities of a legal person. In practical terms, it means the river can be represented at legal proceedings with two lawyers protecting its interests; one from the local Maori tribe that lives near the river and the other from the government. New Zealand has found a creative way to protect the environment, the commons, through giving it rights. Is this replicable in other places as an environmental strategy?