CLIMATE JUSTICE

Definition :
Definition: The climate is changing, human activities are
contributing to this and the impacts are already being felt by people,
plants and animals across the globe1 . However the impacts of
climate change are not evenly distributed. The poorest countries and
the most vulnerable people within them, particularly those whose
economies are dependent on agriculture, will be most affected
despite having contributed least to climate change. It is this unfair
situation that has led to calls from NGOs and developing countries
for climate justice. Justice is generally understood to mean that
which is right, fair, appropriate or deserved, with justice being
achieved when an unjust act is redressed. Within the context of
climate change this means that the poorest countries and people
should be supported by those who have contributed most to climate
change. As a fairly new concept there are multiple def- initions of
climate justice. One that is used by the Mary Robinson Foundation -
Climate Justice states that ‘climate justice links human rights and
development to achieve a human-centred approach, safeguarding
the rights of the most vulnerable and sharing the burdens and
benefits of climate change and its resolution equitably and fairly’.
Essentially, climate justice means trying to ensure that
people and the planet are treated fairly in the ways in
which we: a) try to reduce further climate changes, for
example by cutting down the amount of fossil fuels we
burn to produce energy (known as mitigation); and b)
adapt to the changes we have brought about in the
climate, for example by developing crops that are
resistant to droughts where rainfall levels have
dropped as a result of climate change (known as
adaptation).
 Principles :
1. Respect and protect human rights.
2. Support the right to development.
3. Share benefits and burdens equitably.
4. Ensure that decisions on climate
change are participatory, transparent
and accountable.
5. Highlight gender equality and equity.
6. Harness the transformative power of
education for climate stewardship.
7. Use effective partnerships to secure
climate justice.
For climate justice to work we need:
Better ways of making decisions that
include the voices of all those who are
being affected by climate change (called
‘procedural justice’). To ensure that costs
and benefits of meeting the challenge of
climate change are spread out fairly
according to responsibility and ability
(called ‘distributional justice’). To think
about how the needs of future generations
and non-human beings, those who do not
have a voice in current decisions, can be
better considered in our decision-making
(called ‘just sustainability’).
Ways to achieve climate justice :
1. Recognise climate change
victims.
2. To reinforce human rights.
3. Hold corporations to
account.
4. Beef up international
institutions.
5. Get the trade system right.
Importants :
Climate justice helps us to put into context
the significant impacts of climate change
that we are already experiencing today. We
can better recognise that impacts of climate
change are experienced much differently by
a middle-income family in a developed
country than they are by a poor migrant in
the developing world. Recognising these
differential impacts must lead to just and
equitable climate action that addresses the
needs of those that are unfairly put at risk.
Problems:
Environmental and climate justice is a civil
rights issue. We all depend on the physical
environment and its bounty.Toxic facilities,
like coal-fired power plants and
incinerators, emit mercury, arsenic, lead,
and other contaminants into the water,
food, and lungs of communities. Many of
these same facilities also emit carbon
dioxide and methane — the No. 1 and No. 2
drivers of climate change. But not all people
are equally impacted. Race — even more
than class — is the number one indicator
for the placement of toxic facilities in this
country hit by climate change.
IDLO’s Policy Brief Climate Justice:
A Rule of Law Approach for
Transformative Climate Action
highlights three key elements of
achieving transformative climate action
through the rule of law:1. Empowering
the most climate-vulnerable people to
realize environmental rights and
actively participate in decision-making
processes.2. Strengthening regulatory
frameworks and institutional capacity
for climate-resilient development.3.
Improving governance of land and
other natural resources with a focus on
enhancing land rights and sustaining
peace.
Conclusion:
Threfore, climate justice demands to look beyond the
environmental and ecological concequences of climate
change and take strong political action to secure the
future generation. It humanises the effects of climate
change and insists on a shift from a discourse on green
house gases and melting ice caps into a civil rights
movement with the people and communities most
vulnerable to climate impacts and its heart.There is an
urgent need for civil society group to put pressure on
governments to take the path of sustainable development
and make climate change actions a top priority.