We’re often called the “lawyers for the environment” and that’s true, but we’re also lawyers for the people.  

For over 30 years, State and Territory Environmental Defenders Offices have given ordinary Australians the chance to have their say in decisions that affect them most and a voice in the courts when they need it. 

In every major environmental battle - from Tasmania’s Tarkine, to WA’s James Price Point, NT’s Watarrka Kings Canyon national park, NSW’ Blue Mountains water catchment and QLD’s Adani coal mine - Environmental Defenders Offices have provided the crucial legal expertise and advice to community groups and organisations defending nature. 

The law is a powerful tool for change. We tackle environmental protection in three interlinking ways:

Litigation: holding law-breakers and decision-makers to account. Our record for bringing ground-breaking cases on behalf of our clients – protecting the Great Barrier Reef, challenging coal mines on climate change grounds, and defending rural farming communities from coal seam gas exploration to name a few - is unparalleled. 

Behind the scenes, we give legal support and advice without fear or favour, often winning the argument before it ever goes to Court.

Law Reform: strengthening our laws to truly protect our environment - for example: we need laws that prevent extinction and effectively address the threats that cause extinctions in the first place.  

Legal Education: empowering people and giving them a voice in the decisions that affect them most. We educate and nurture the next generation of environmental lawyers, and share our expert knowledge with communities near and far.

But we can only do this with the help of people like you.

Your gift to our Environmental Defence Fund will help us become the largest environmental public interest law firm in the Asia-Pacific region - a formidable force for justice for people and nature. 

As a national organisation, we’ll tackle issues like the proliferation of gas exploration licenses across Queensland and Australia’s north, water management in the Murray Darling Basin, and problems crossing multiple jurisdictions, like the scourge of marine plastics. 

Using the best available science, our lawyers are now taking on fossil fuels developments right across the continent, protecting our precious forests and wild places, standing up for human rights and public health. We need you to stand with us by donating today. 

Together, we will improve access to justice and level the playing field for ordinary Australians, as they go up against powerful opponents with deep pockets and influence.  Thank you for standing with us.