The Evolution of International Environmental Law Amidst Political Gridlock: Environmental Rights as a Common Ground

In the leadup to the 50th anniversary of the Stockholm Conference and the global Covid- 19 pandemic, nations and people have realized they have not lived up to the obligations of the U.N. Charter and the principles of international environmental law. In 2019, the U.N. General Assembly (UNGA) adopted Resolution No. A/RES/73/333, which set forth substantive and procedural recommendations for follow-up work for the progressive development of international environmental law, and specifically called for the adoption of a political declaration in 2022 to strengthen the implementation of international environmental law. The resolution derives from the proposed Global Pact for the Environment and significant discussions on gaps in international environmental law by the Secretary General and an ad hoc group of the UNGA which met in Nairobi during 2019. The thesis follows this process until January 2022. As the world prepares to adopt a new political declaration, this thesis analyzes the multiple roads that lead here and the way forward. The thesis analyzes the current ecological crises humanity faces and some possible ways to address them. These solutions are grounded on the bedrock of Earth Jurisprudence, exemplified here through religious and philosophical foundations of Earth conservation. Through this bedrock, the thesis analyzes the rights-based approaches to the Earth Emergency Crisis, following the pathway of development of the right to a healthy environment which led to its international recognition at the Human Rights Council in 2021. This discussion significantly contributes to the challenges we currently face in the Earth Emergency Crisis, while also critically evaluating possible innovations to promote effectiveness in international environmental law