Finding Light in Dark Places - Specific Obligations for Climate Change and Ocean Acidification Mitigation

Abstract

Can the new advisory opinion interpreting the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) move us beyond the lethargy of unmet climate change policy needs? The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea established the gravity of this question by stating that “climate change represents an existential threat and raises human rights concerns”. The Tribunal acted both boldly and conservatively by interpreting UNCLOS as an independent source of international legally binding obligations to address climate change and ocean acidification.

Keywords

• Climate Crisis
• ITLOS
• International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea | Hamburg
• Internationaler Seegerichtshof. Kammer für Meeresbodenstreitigkeiten | Hamburg
• Law of the Sea
• Ocean Acidification