The International Court of Justice dropped an advisory opinion that basically told wealthy countries they can't hide behind climate treaties anymore. Former UN Special Rapporteur David Boyd says the ruling smashed the argument that obligations only exist within the Paris Agreement, and it confirmed that customary international law applies even to countries that never signed up.
Boyd thinks the ICJ could have gone harder on defining whether the right to a clean environment counts as customary law or jus cogens, but 165 countries already recognize it domestically through constitutions or legislation. The court unanimously agreed the right exists under international law, which is wild since powerhouses like the US, Russia, and Germany argued it didn't exist at all. States have to submit Nationally Determined Contributions that represent their highest possible ambition toward the 1.5-degree Celsius target, and Canada's recent NDC filed before the opinion might not cut it anymore.
Youth activists scored a massive win when Hawaii settled a lawsuit by committing to net-zero transportation emissions, and Vermont is considering constitutional amendments, while New York already enshrined the right back in 2022.
Boyd thinks the ICJ could have gone harder on defining whether the right to a clean environment counts as customary law or jus cogens, but 165 countries already recognize it domestically through constitutions or legislation. The court unanimously agreed the right exists under international law, which is wild since powerhouses like the US, Russia, and Germany argued it didn't exist at all. States have to submit Nationally Determined Contributions that represent their highest possible ambition toward the 1.5-degree Celsius target, and Canada's recent NDC filed before the opinion might not cut it anymore.
Youth activists scored a massive win when Hawaii settled a lawsuit by committing to net-zero transportation emissions, and Vermont is considering constitutional amendments, while New York already enshrined the right back in 2022.
