Climate change is the defining challenge of this generation, and transforming our energy systems is the largest part of solving this challenge. Nations have pledged goals in the distant future, but these are insufficient to keep the planet below 2℃ of warming. Citizens have taken legal action against states, and legal action between states seems soon to follow. Both have been studied substantially, though there has yet to be a comparison of different principles under international law and for the question to be contextualised within the energy transition. This gap will be addressed with the research question of this thesis which will seek to find how countries can be held legally responsible using the no-harm principle and human rights principle for not sufficiently undertaking a sustainable energy transition and, if possible, be forced to act more quickly. The question will be answered through a qualitative document analysis of relevant cases and legally binding treaties related to the No-harm principle and human rights approach. The findings demonstrate that the No-harm principle was the better option for pursuing such a case given its expansive authority through theResponsibility of States for Internationally Wrongful Acts (IWA) treaty, which codifies the No-harm principle into international law and has argued numerous environmental cases successfully. However, the No-harm principle and IWA can only be brought by states, which is challenging due to its implication for international relations. The human rights-based approach does not have this risk as citizens can bring cases forward, though there is a significant gap due to a lack of courts in some parts of the world. The results will suggest an ideal case based on these ideal characteristics: a Small Islands Developing Nation bringing a case against the G20 based on a violation of the No-harm principle and the IWA. Though this case was determined to be the most likely to succeed in inducing high emission countries to take action, the duration of such a case and its final process remains in question.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:uu-507417 |
| Date | January 2023 |
| Creators | Gervais, Nicholas |
| Publisher | Uppsala universitet, Institutionen för geovetenskaper |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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