France Seconde Moral and Civic Education

1. Rights, freedoms and responsibility

Rule of law, rights and pluralism · Freedom and responsibility: information · Environmental rights and duties

• Rule of Law – The rule of law means everyone, including the government and its leaders, must follow the same known laws, which are applied equally by fair and independent courts. Its main principles are supremacy of law, equality before the law, clear and public laws, fair trials, protected rights and separation of powers. Laws are made and changed through an open process, can be reviewed by courts against a constitution or charter of rights, and countries also agree to international law through treaties.
• Media Literacy – Media literacy is the skill of reading, questioning and creating media: news, ads, videos, posts, films and games. Every media text is made by someone, for a purpose, for an audience, using forms, conventions and techniques that shape how we feel. A media-literate person checks the source, evidence, other coverage and the original before believing or sharing, notices bias and filter bubbles, and makes their own media responsibly.
• Environmental Policy: How Societies Protect Nature – Environmental policy is the set of laws, taxes, rules and agreements a society uses to protect air, water, land, climate and living things. It is needed because pollution is an external cost: the polluter does not pay for the harm done to others, and shared resources (air, rivers, oceans) get overused. Main tools: regulation (limits, standards, bans, environmental impact assessment), market tools (pollution taxes, cap and trade permits, subsidies for clean options), protected areas, and information (labels, reporting). Key principles: polluter pays, prevention, precaution and sustainable development. People have rights to a healthy environment and duties to protect it. Policy works at local, national and global levels, because pollution crosses every boundary. Societies balance three choices: exploit, preserve or protect (use wisely).