February 21, 2023
GENEVA (CH) — The Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) welcomed the tabling of a UN resolution requesting an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on human rights and climate change, which had been requested following an initiative by Vanuatu.
CIEL’s Climate and Energy Program Director Nikki Reisch said:
“We commend Vanuatu and the other countries that introduced this resolution in the UN General Assembly yesterday, asking the world’s highest court to clarify what international law requires of States in the face of the climate crisis, and the legal ramifications of failing to meet those obligations. The practical consequences of climate inaction are all too clear and dire for present and future generations, as forests burn, cities flood, fields dry up, and sea levels rise around the world. Understanding the legal consequences could help kick States into urgently ending reliance on the fossil fuels driving the crisis, and spur greater international cooperation toward climate justice. States now have an opportunity – and an imperative – to answer the call of the Pacific youth who built the momentum behind this initiative, and demonstrate commitment to human rights and the environment by sponsoring this critical resolution.”
Note to editors:
The draft resolution had been tabled by a group of geographically diverse countries, covering both the Global North and the Global South, and states vulnerable to the climate crisis as well as large historical emitters: Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Bangladesh, Costa Rica, Germany, Liechtenstein, Federated States of Micronesia, Morocco, Mozambique, New Zealand, Portugal, Romania, Samoa, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Uganda, Vanuatu, and Vietnam.
Media contact:
Niccolo Sarno: press@ciel.org