WYCJ campaigns at COP26
We, the Youth of the world, after taking the streets and the venues across the world we went to the COP26 with the same hope: to bring justice to those who are the most affected by the current climate crisis that we are facing. The COP26 was the occasion to bring light to what we have been campaigning for all those years. That is to say an Advisory Opinion from the International Court of Justice clearly establishing the link between climate change and human rights, and consecutively to human rights obligations.
By going to COP26, we not only hoped to rally support for the Advisory Opinion, but we also wanted to give a voice to the people who are often affected the most but heard the least. We are acutely aware of the threat people and communities are facing globally, and of the permanent loss and the irreversible damage caused by the climate crisis. We see this damage happen everyday; people losing their properties and being forced to relocate. In order to tackle this we need to prevent the active loss of Indigenous knowledge and cultural heritage.
To defend all those causes at the COP26, we concentrated all our actions in three main ventures : the Commonwealth Event, Law & Governance Event and Benelux Event. These three events were able to spark rich conversations with actors across the globe and from different fields of actions while letting youth be the guide of those discussion.
Commonwealth Event
The Commonwealth Pavilion Side event was one that looked at the broader climate discussions and focussed on oceans and the work that is being undertaken to bolster and assist the work on oceans through the use of international law. Panelists from the governments of Fiji and Solomon Islands spoke about their governments initiatives relating to oceans - carbon levy and the blue bonds respectively while Pacific CSO rep, Maureen Penjueli discussed the dangers of seabed mining and the need for more activism and more attention on that space. WYCJ’s Aditi Shetye also made an emphatic intervention on how an ICJAO can help the work on all these fronts and assist the climate fight more broadly. With record attendance in person, the Commonwealth Pavilion side event brought the curtains down on a great COP26 campaign by the WYCJ and PISFCC.
A recording is available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FcgqumuSWCM
Panelists at the Commonwealth Side Event
Commonwealth Side Event
Law & Governance Event
The Law & Governance Side event aimed at providing a deeper understanding of the need to include a rights-based approach to addressing the climate crisis and the need to utilise international legal mechanisms to clarify and develop international law in this area. Panellists coming from a wide range of professions, from ground-root organizations to advocates and academics specialised in the field of International Environmental Law, different analytical viewpoints were developed. The discussion revolved around the methodology of drafting a legal question to be asked to the International Court of Justice which includes youth, human rights and protection of the environment were explored in various aspects, enabling interesting discussions between the Panellists and the audience on the topic of environmental protection and human rights in front of the ICJ.
A recording is available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUJ-0pEly3M
Law and Governance Day side event at the University of Glasgow
Panelist Monica Tinta speaking on the ICJAO
Benelux Event
On 2 November 2021, WYCJ and PISFCC organised the side event “The road to the International Court of Justice: a youth-led initiative to take climate justice to the world’s highest court” at the Benelux Pavilion. The side event was organised in collaboration with the governments of Vanuatu and Fiji.
The side event was the kick-off of WYCJ’s presence at COP26, and speakers included the Attorney General and Minister for Climate Change of Fiji, Hon. Aiyaz Saiyed-Khaiyum. And the Vanuatu Ambassador to the UN, H.E. Odo Tevi. Alongside PISFCC campaigner Solomon Yeo and WYCJ campaigner Jule Schnakenberg. The event was moderated by UN Youth Representative of the Netherlands, Dennis Jansen.
The side event discussed the benefits of requesting an ICJ Advisory Opinion and there was room for audience interaction. Questions by the curious audience concerned the strategic next steps, others asked specifically about the Pacific leadership of this initiative. Furthermore, the new Climate Change Act of Fiji and necessity for this additional legal pathway was addressed.
A recording is available here: https://youtu.be/xTz2tyKf064
Panelists at the BENELUX Pavilion side event
Q&A at the BENELUX Event
Q&A at the BENELUX Event
