Abstract
The institutional and regulatory transformation of international environmental law is essential to effectively respond to the challenges of the Anthropocene. Taking into account the necessity of innovative responses to global environmental change, this chapter champions the establishment of the International Environmental Court. The chapter emphasizes that the creation of the International Environmental Court needs to be implemented within the framework of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which were also produced and will be implemented in the Anthropocene. The creation of a new judicial institution at the international level will contribute to the fight against fragmentation in international law. This will in turn contribute to the holistic global governance that is needed for effective management of the interconnected planetary-level environmental concerns of the Anthropocene.
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Notes
- 1.
Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 10 May 2018, 72/277 “Towards a Global Pact for the Environment”. http://www.un.org/en/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/72/277. Accessed 11 February 2019. UN Secretary-General report, ‘Gaps in International Environmental Law and Environment-Related Instruments: Towards a Global Pact for the Environment’ (A/73/419). https://undocs.org/A/73/419. Accessed 11 February 2019.
- 2.
Resolution adopted by the General Assembly 70/1. 25 September 2015. Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/70/1&Lang=E. Accessed 11 February 2019.
- 3.
Resolution adopted by the General Assembly 70/1. 25 September 2015. Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/70/1&Lang=E. Accessed 11 February 2019.
- 4.
See: Certain activities carried out by Nicaragua in the border area (Costa Rica v. Nicaragua). Compensation Owed by the Republic of Nicaragua to the Republic of Costa Rica. https://www.icj-cij.org/en/case/150. International Court of Justice, February 2, 2018. Accessed 11 February 2019.
- 5.
Statement of the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Climate change and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. 2018. Geneva. https://www.ohchr.org/ru/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=23691&LangID=E. Accessed 10 October 2018.
- 6.
States’ Obligations under the Convention on the Rights of the Child in the Context of Climate Change. http://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/HRTBs-synthesis-report.pdf. Accessed 10 September 2018.
- 7.
Regional Agreement on Access to Information, Public Participation and Justice in Environmental Matters in Latin America and the Caribbean. 2018. https://repositorio.cepal.org/bitstream/handle/11362/43583/1/S1800428_en.pdf. Accessed 10 September 2018.
- 8.
E.g., Massachusetts v. EPA, 549 U.S. 497 (2007); Am. Elec. Power Co. v. Connecticut, 564 U.S. 410 (2011); Native Vill. of Kivalina v. ExxonMobil Corp., 696 F.3d 849 (9th Cir. 2012); Juliana v. United States, No. 6:15-cv-1517-TC, 2016 WL 183903 (D. Or. Jan. 14, 2016); Friends of the Earth v. Canada, [2008] F.C. 1183 (Can. Fed. Ct.); Leghari v Fed’n of Pakistan, W.P. No. 25501/2015 (Lahore High Ct.) (Sept. 4, 2015) (Pak.); Gbemre v. Shell Petroleum Dev. Co. Nigeria [2005] AFR. HUM. RTS. L. REP. 151 (F.H.C. Nigeria); Greenpeace New Zealand v. Northland Reg’l Council [2006] NZHC CIV 2006- 404-004617 at [57] per Williams J. (N.Z.); Genesis Power Ltd. v. Franklin Dist. Council [2005] NZRMA 541 (N.Z.).); RB-Den Haag [Hague Dist. Ct.] 24 juni 2015, ECLI:NL:RBDHA:2015:7196 (Stichting Urgenda/Nederlanden) [Urgenda Found. v. Netherlands] (Neth.).
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SoIntsev, A.M. (2019). The International Environmental Court—A Necessary Institution for Sustainable Planetary Governance in the Anthropocene. In: Lim, M. (eds) Charting Environmental Law Futures in the Anthropocene. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-9065-4_11
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