CIVICUS speaks with Manuel Páez Ramírez, coordinator of the Espeletia Legal Clinic at the Externado University of Colombia, about the Inter-American Court of Human Rights’ (IACtHR) recent advisory opinion on the climate emergency and human rights.
In January 2023, the governments of Chile and Colombia asked the IACtHR to clarify states’ obligations in the face of the climate crisis. Its response came in July with an advisory opinion that should enable civil society to push for more effective action on climate change. The court recognised the right to a healthy and stable climate and required states to prevent, mitigate and adapt to climate change, repair damage and guarantee the participation in decision-making of Indigenous communities, Afro-descendants, women and other excluded groups.
