Theorizing a human rights- based approach to biodiversity and its justiciability in domestic and international jurisprudence

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.12795/IESTSCIENTIA.2023.i01.05

Keywords:

Biodiversidad, Derechos humanos, Equidad intrageneracional e intergeneracional, Cambio climático, Derechos de la Naturaleza

Abstract

This paper sets out the results achieved in the framework of a research project dealing with the protection of biodiversity from the perspective of international human rights law. In particular, this study draws inspiration form the environmental case law on the rights of Nature and from a rising climate litigation wave that stands out for several prominent features, namely: the use of human rights and constitutional rights as a standard for assessing States’ compliance with their obligations under international human rights law and international environmental law; the narrative of intragenerational and intergenerational equity; a renewed reading of extraterritoriality. In this respect, the most significant domestic and international decisions are analyzed, and some viable ways in which the results achieved by the case law under consideration may benefit the protection of biodiversity and its justiciability are suggested, including multi-level judicial dialogue.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Barroso, L. J. (2022, December 5). Facing climate change in the Brazilian Supreme Court: The right to a healthy environment as a human right. I·CONnect. http://www.iconnectblog.com/2022/12/facing-climate-change-in-the-brazilian supreme court-the-right-to-a-healthy-environment-as-a-human-right/

Bäumler, J. (2021, June 8). Sustainable Development made justiciable: The German Constitutional Court’s climate ruling on intra- and inter-generational equity. EJIL:Talk!. https://www.ejiltalk.org/sustainable-development-made justiciable-the-german constitutional-courts-climate-ruling-on-intra-and inter-generational-equity/

Bergkamp, L. (2020). The Dutch Supreme Court’s Climate Judgment: Its Consequences and Implications for Business – Revolution Through Litigation. European Energy and Environmental Law Review, 29(3), 89-97. https://doi.org/10.54648/eelr2020032

Berkes, A. (2018, March 28). A New Extraterritorial Jurisdictional Link Recognised by the IACtHR. EJIL:Talk!. https://www.ejiltalk.org/a-new-extraterritorial jurisdictional-link-recognised-by the-iacthr/

Besson, S. (2020). Due Diligence and Extraterritorial Human Rights Obligations – Mind the Gap!. ESIL Reflection, 9(1). https://esil-sedi.eu/esil-reflection-due diligence-and-extraterritorial human-rights-obligations-mind-the-gap/

Besson, S. (2021). The Extraterritoriality of the European Convention on Human Rights: Why Human Rights Depend on Jurisdiction and What Jurisdiction Amounts To’. Leiden Journal of International Law, 25(4), 857-884. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0922156512000489

Brizioli, S. (2019). Shifting variables in regulating genetic resources: definition, legal and access. Diritto e Processo, 411-440.

Brown Weiss, E. (1992). In Fairness To Future Generations and Sustainable Development. American University International Law Review, 8(1), 19-26.

Burger, M., & Wentz, J. (2015). Climate Change and Human Rights. In M. Faure (Ed.), Elgar Encyclopedia of Environmental Law (pp. 198-212). Edward Elgar Publishing.

Clark, P., Liston, G., & Kalpouzos, I. (2020, October 6). Climate change and the European Court of Human Rights: The Portuguese Youth Case. EJIL:Talk!. https://www.ejiltalk.org/climate change-and-the-european-court-of-human rights-the-portuguese-youth-case/

D’Aloia, A. (2019). Bioetica ambientale, sostenibilità, teoria intergenerazionale della Costituzione. BioLaw Journal-Rivista di BioDiritto, 2S, 645-678. https://doi.org/10.15168/2284-4503-491

Desierto, D. (2021, October 8). Just Transitions in Climate Change Actions: Are States Respecting, Promoting, and Considering Human Rights Obligations in Setting and Implementing NDCs?. EJIL:Talk!. https://www.ejiltalk.org/respecting human-rights-obligations-in-climate-change actions-are-states-evaluating-ndcs human-rights-impacts/

Feria-Tinta, M. (2021). Climate Change Litigation in the European Court of Human Rights: Causation, Imminence and Other Key Underlying Notions. Europe of Rights & Liberties/Europe des Droits & Libertés, 1(3), 52-71.

Giménez, I. A., & Petit de Gabriel, E. W. (2022, October 24). Cambio climático y derechos humanos: el caso de los Isleños del Estrecho de Torres. Aquiescencia. Blog de derecho internacional. https://aquiescencia.net/2022/10/24/cambio climatico-y-derechos-humanos-el-caso-de-los-islenos-del-estrecho-de-torres/

Heri, C. (2020, December 22). The ECtHR’s Pending Climate Change Case: What’s Ill Treatment Got To Do With It?. EJIL:Talk!. https://www.ejiltalk.org/the ecthrs-pending-climate-change case-whats-ill-treatment-got-to-do-with-it/

Keller K., & Heri, C. (2022). The Future is Now: Climate Cases Before the ECtHR. Nordic Journal of Human Rights, 40(1), 153-174. https://doi.org/10.1080/18918131.2022.2064074

Keller K., Heri, C., & Piskóty, R.(2022). Something Ventured, Nothing Gained? Remedies before the ECtHR and Their Potential for Climate Change Cases. Human Rights LawReview, 22, 1-26. https://doi.org/10.1093/hrlr/ngab030

Kotzé, L. J. (2021). Neubauer et al. versus Germany: Planetary Climate Litigation for the Anthropocene?. German Law Journal, 22, 1423-1444. https://doi.org/10.1017/glj.2021.87

Laukkanen, V., & Laukkanen, V. (2022, November 2). The Point of No Return: The Inadequacy of the Law of State Responsibility in Finding International Responsibility for the Adverse Effects of Climate Change. International Law Blog. https://internationallaw.blog/2022/11/02/the point-of-no-return the inadequacy-of-the-law-of-state-responsibility-in-finding international responsiblity-for-the-adverse-effects-of-climate-change/

Leijten, I. (2019). Human rights v. Insufficient climate action: The Urgenda case. Netherlands Quarterly of Human Rights, 37(2), 112-118. https://doi.org/10.1177/0924051919844375

Mayer, B. (2021a). Climate change mitigation as an obligation under human rights treaties?. The American Journal of International Law, 115(3), 409-451. https://doi.org/10.1017/ajil.2021.9

Mayer, B. (2021b, June 3). Milieudefensie v Shell: Do oil corporations hold a duty to mitigate climate change?. EJIL:Talk!. https://www.ejiltalk.org/milieudefensie-v-shell-do-oil-corporations hold-a duty-to-mitigate-climate-change/

Milanovic, M. (2011). Extraterritorial Application of Human Rights Treaties: Law, Principles, and Policy. Oxford University Press.

Neumann Ciuffo, L. (2022, 7 July). Brazil’s High Court First to Declare Paris Agreement a Human Rights Treaty. Yale Environment 360. https://e360.yale.edu/digest/paris-agreement-human rights-treaty-brazil

Nordlander, L., & Monti, A. (2022, June 30). A new variety of rights-based climate litigation: a challenge against the Energy Charter Treaty before the European Court of Human Rights. EJIL:Talk!. https://www.ejiltalk.org/a-new-variety of-rights-based-climate-litigation-a challenge-against-the-energy-charter-treaty before-the-european-court-of-human-rights/

Oloo, A., & Vandenhole, W. (2021). Enforcement of extraterritorial human rights obligations in the African human rights system. In M. Gibney, G. Erdem Türkelli, M. Krajewski, W. Vandenhole (Eds.), The Routledge Handbook on Extraterritorial Human Rights Obligations (pp. 140-150). Routledge.

Pagano, M. (2019, October 16). Climate change litigation before EU Courts and the ‘butterfly effect’. Blogdroiteuropéen. https://blogdroiteuropeen.com/2019/10/16/climate-change-litigation-before-eu courts-and-the-butterfly-effect-by-mario-pagano/

Parfit, D. (1984). Reasons and Persons. Oxford University Press.

Prieto, G. (2021). The Los Cedros Forest has Rights. Verfassungblog. https://verfassungsblog.de/the-los-cedros-forest-has-rights/

Rajamani, L. (2018). Human Rights in the Climate Change Regime. In J. Knox & R. Pejan (Eds.), The human rights to a healthy environment (pp. 236-251). Cambridge University Press.

Sandvig, J., Dawson, P., & Tjelmeland, M. (2021, June 23). Can the ECHR Encompass the Transnational and Intertemporal Dimensions of Climate Harm?. Can the ECHR Encompass the Transnational and Intertemporal Dimensions of Climate Harm?. EJIL:Talk!. https://www.ejiltalk.org/can-the-echr-encompass-the transnational-and-intertemporal dimensions-of-climate-harm/

Savaresi, A., & Setzer, J. (2022). Rights-based litigation in the climate emergency: mapping the landscape and new knowledge frontiers. Journal of Human Rights and the Environment, 13(1), 7-34. https://doi.org/10.4337/jhre.2022.01.01

Selmi, D. (2022). Dawn at Mineral King Valley: The Sierra Club, the Disney Company, and the Rise of Environmental Law. University of Chicago Press.

Setzer, J., & Benjamin, H. (2019). Climate Litigation in the Global South: Constraints and Innovations. Transnational Environmental Law, 9(1). 77-101. https://doi.org/10.1017/S2047102519000268

Setzer, J., & Higham, C. (2022). Global trends in climate change litigation: 2022 snapshot. Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment and Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy, London School of Economics and Political Science, London. https://www.lse.ac.uk/granthaminstitute/publication/global-trends-in-climate change litigation-2022/

Slobodian, L. (2020). Defending the Future: Intergenerational Equity in Climate Litigation. The Georgetown Environmental Law Review, 32, 569-589.

Sourgens, F. G. (2022, February 24). Energy Lessons from the Ukraine Crisis. EJIL:Talk!. https://www.ejiltalk.org/energy-lessons-from-the-ukraine-crisis/

Stuckl, S. (2023). One Rights: Human and Animal Rights in the Anthropocene. Springer.

Tigre, M. A. (2021). COVID-19 and Amazonia: Rights-based approaches for the pandemic response. RECIEL, Review of European, Comparative and International Environmental Law, 30(2), 162-172.

Voigt, C. (2022). The climate change dimension of human rights: due diligence and states’ positive obligations. In N. Kobylarz & E. Grant (Eds.), Human Rights and the Planet (pp. 152-171). Edward Elgar Publishing.

Vordermayer, M. (2018). The Extraterritorial Application of Multilateral Environmental Agreements Harvard International Law Journal, 59(1), 59-124.

Wang, W. (2017). The Non-Precluded Measure Type Clause in International Investment Agreements: Significances, Challenges, and Reactions. ICSID Review, 32(2), 447-456.

Wesche, P. (2021). Rights of Nature in Practice: A Case Study on the Impacts of the Colombian Atrato River Decision. Journal of Environmental Law, 33, 531–556.

Downloads

Published

2023-06-29

How to Cite

Fanni, S. (2023). Theorizing a human rights- based approach to biodiversity and its justiciability in domestic and international jurisprudence. IUS ET SCIENTIA, 9(1), 69–80. https://doi.org/10.12795/IESTSCIENTIA.2023.i01.05