event

Rising Seas Triggered Climate Lawsuits: What Now?

Wed. July 31st, 2024
YouTube

Climate change litigation is experiencing an unprecedented moment. More and more states are turning to international tribunals to seek guidance on a key question: what are their obligations under international law to address the climate crisis? The International Court of Justice is analyzing what the legal consequences are for those that have harmed the climate system. The Inter-American Court of Human Rights has been tasked with clarifying states’ human rights obligations in relation to the climate emergency, including on climate-related mobility. Similarly, the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) was asked to look at states’ obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) to mitigate pollution of the marine environment.

In May, ITLOS delivered its advisory opinion, confirming, for instance, that carbon emissions “constitute pollution of the marine environment” as defined by the UNCLOS, with all that entails for the 164 United Nations member states who are party to it. It's now time to explore what this ruling means in practice. Will there be progress on accountability for polluters? And considering that one of the impacts of climate change is increased involuntary human mobility, do courts offer promise for governing climate mobility?

Join the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace for an online discussion on this landmark decision and the future of climate litigation. Liliana Gamboa, a nonresident scholar in Carnegie’s Sustainability, Climate, and Geopolitics program and Carnegie California, will moderate this panel featuring Antonia Urrejola, Lee-Anne Sackett, Viviana Krsticevic, and Ama Francis,. They will take audience questions at the conclusion of the event.

MigrationClimate ChangeUnited Nations
Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.
event speakers

Antonia Urrejola

Antonia Urrejola served as Foreign Minister of Chile from March 2022 to March 2023. Previously, she was Commissioner of the Inter American Commission on Human Rights from 2018-2021 and its President in 2021. She has extensive legal experience in international law, human rights, and constitutional law.

Lee-Anne Sackett

Lee-Anne Sackett is currently the Legal Affairs Manager for Vanuatu’s Climate Justice & Diplomacy Program, under the Office of the Attorney-General. She is also the Principal Consultant for Vanuatu Law & Policy Consulting, specialising in national policy development and law reform

Viviana Krsticevic

Viviana Krsticevic is the Executive Director of the Center for Justice and International Law (CEJIL). She leads initiatives across the Americas to promote human rights using international law and the Inter-American System for the Protection of Human Rights.

Ama Francis

Ama Francis is developing the International Refugee Assistance Project’s climate strategy as Climate Director. They are also a non-resident fellow at the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law at Columbia Law School.

Liliana Gamboa

Nonresident Scholar, Carnegie California; Sustainability, Climate, and Geopolitics Program

Liliana Gamboa is a nonresident scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Carnegie California and in the Sustainability, Climate, and Geopolitics Program.

Noah Gordon

Acting Co-Director, Sustainability, Climate, and Geopolitics Program, Fellow, Europe Program

Noah J. Gordon is acting co-director of the Sustainability, Climate, and Geopolitics Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, DC.