The 30th Conference of the Parties concluded in Brazil this month, with delegates focused on reinforcing the 2015 Paris Agreement’s goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C. Central to this year’s negotiations: pressing member states to commit to more ambitious Nationally Determined Contributions, or NDCs. In the lead-up to COP30, JURIST spoke with Dr. David [...]
Search Results for: Kyoto protocol
UN court affirms states obligations to act against climate change
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) affirmed Wednesday the obligations of states relating to climate change under treaties and customary law. The court emphasized that the severe and far-reaching climate change consequences are an “urgent and existential threat.” The court affirmed that environmental treaties, climate change treaties, and customary law inform one another and are [...]
Aidana Tastanova is a Kazakhstan national and a 3rd year law student attending the Moscow State Institute of International Relations under a Kazakh government scholarship. Last week Kazakhstan brought an action for violation of environmental protection against North Caspian Operating Company (NCOC), the consortium leading development of the country’s massive Kashagan oil field, in the [...]
India parliament passes bill to introduce domestic carbon credit market
The lower house of the Indian parliament Monday passed a bill establishing a central scheme for the purchase and sale of carbon credits. The bill also promotes clean energy by obligating certain large consumers of electricity to use renewable energy and conserve energy. The Energy Conservation (Amendment) Act seeks to amend the two-decade-old Energy Conservation [...]
The Human Rights Responsibilities of States as a Result of Climate Change
Introduction Recently, it has been reported that increasing numbers of people are dying because of heat waves and that climate change is making the phenomenon ‘longer, hotter, more likely and more dangerous’. Another report bluntly points out that the climate crisis can only create two classes: ‘those who can flee, and those who cannot’. It [...]
Changing international relations at the end of the 20th century, as well as concern for how various countries would handle sensitive environmental issues, led to the UN Conference on Environment and Development, also known as the Rio Conference. Held in...
New Zealand judge rejects refugee status based on climate change
A New Zealand High Court judge on Tuesday held that two Kiribati citizens, could not be granted refugee status based on the effects of climate change on Kiribati. Ioane Teitiota and his wife moved to...
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced on Friday that Canada and the EU have reached an agreement in principle on a comprehensive free trade agreement. The Canada-EU Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement...
Canada withdraws from UN convention combating African drought
The Canadian government announced Wednesday that it is withdrawing from a UN convention intended to fight droughts in Africa. Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper claimed the move was necessary as the convention was "too bureaucratic"...
The EU announced Monday that it would halt for one year its policy of charging airlines for greenhouse gas emissions (CO2) for flights into and out of EU member state airports. As a result...