Notre Dame Law School Global Human Rights Clinic to participate in climate change hearings at the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in Barbados

The Inter-American Court of Human Rights will hold its 166th Regular Session in Barbados from April 22 to 26, following an invitation from the Government of Barbados. During the Session, the Court will hold its Public Hearing on “The Climate Emergency and Human Rights,” an Advisory Opinion Request submitted by the Republics of Colombia and Chile. The Notre Dame Law School Global Human Rights Clinic and the Notre Dame Reparations Design and Compliance Lab submitted an expert brief on this matter in December and will participate in oral arguments on the brief. Oral arguments will be made by Notre Dame Law School professors Diane Desierto and Francisco Urbina.

 

Desierto, the founding faculty director of the Notre Dame Law School Global Human Rights Clinic, said, “This Public Hearing on the Climate Emergency and Human Rights is the only international advisory opinion proceeding in all international courts that will address the issue of reparative measures that States must take to ensure their compliance with all of their climate obligations and human rights obligations, especially for the most vulnerable populations of small island developing States, displaced children, persons of Afro-descent in Latin America, women, rural farmworkers, subsistence fishermen, environmental defenders, among others.”

She added, “The Public Hearing is also the most genuinely inclusive international proceeding, being open to the participation of States, international organizations, civil society organizations, and renowned experts in climate change and human rights law.”

Notre Dame Law School will join other groups and organizations that will also be participating in oral arguments, including: Columbia Law School, UN Special Rapporteurs, the Georgetown University Law Center, Oxfam, UCLA School of Law, Cornell Law School, and NYU School of Law.

The Barbados delegation from Notre Dame Law School includes 18 participants consisting of faculty members; Clinic staff; and J.D., Human Rights LL.M., J.S.D., and undergraduate research students.

“The opportunity to attend the climate change hearings at the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in Barbados will be a transformative experience for me as a student aspiring to practice international environmental law,” said Laura Allaben, a third-year law student involved in ​​Notre Dame Law School’s Global Human Rights Clinic. “Attending the climate change hearings at the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in Barbados on behalf of the Notre Dame Global Human Rights Clinic also signifies the role Notre Dame faculty and students can play in shaping legal discourse on the connections between international human rights and climate change.”

Oluwaseun Ojo, a Human Rights LL.M. student who is also in the Clinic, said, “Attending the world’s largest Public Hearing on climate change and human rights, organized by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, is like standing at the crossroads of justice and the environment, feeling the heartbeat of our planet’s struggle. It’s a chance to not just witness history, but to be a part of it, to feel the urgency and responsibility of shaping a future with climate justice where every voice is heard and every right is protected.”

Desierto concluded, “The Notre Dame Law School Global Human Rights Clinic is participating in this landmark global Public Hearing to demonstrate that all climate actions of States and non-State actors can and must be effectively designed with the fullest respect, protection, and fulfillment of human rights law for all, to ensure not just the goal of reaching net zero neutrality, but that the human dignity of the most climate vulnerable is realized in a genuine just transition to sustainable development.”

In addition to the global Public Hearing, Desierto will join the President of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, the President of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, and one of the most senior Judges of the Court, on April 22 at the distinguished panel and International Seminar, “Impact and Challenges of International Human Rights Law.” As an expert in the field, Desierto will discuss emerging trends in international human rights law.

On April 17, Desierto received the Durwood Zaelke Global Eco-Action Award at an international event supported by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and Environment. The Award was given in recognition of an amicus brief that Desierto wrote and filed, arguing the Clinic’s position on the integration of human rights in all climate actions.

Learn more about the Notre Dame Law School Global Human Rights Clinic at https://ndlsglobalhumanrights.nd.edu/.