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FROM THE RULE OF LAW TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL RULE OF LAW

Chacrit Sitdhiwej

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THE RULE OF LAW

a principle of governance in which all persons, institutions and entities, public and private,
including the State itself, are accountable to laws that are publicly promulgated, equally
enforced and independently adjudicated, and which are consistent with international
human rights norms and standards. It requires, as well, measures to ensure adherence to
the principles of supremacy of law, equality before the law, accountability to the law,
fairness in the application of the law, separation of powers, participation in decision-
making, legal certainty, avoidance of arbitrariness and procedural and legal transparency

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– Secretary-General of the United Nations (2004)

Source: United Nations and the Rule of Law <goo.gl/z37Qp4> 2

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THE FOUR UNIVERSAL PRINCIPLES OF
THE RULE OF LAW
accessibility & impartial
accountability just laws open government
dispute resolution

The government as well
as private actors are
accountable under the law
The laws are clear,
publicized, stable, and just;
are applied evenly; and
protect fundamental rights,
including the security of
persons and property and
certain core human rights
The processes by which Justice is delivered timely
the laws are enacted, by competent, ethical, and
administered, and enforced independent
are accessible, fair, and representatives and
efficient neutrals who are
accessible, have adequate
resources, and reflect the
makeup of the
communities they serve

Source: World Justice Project <goo.gl/ZRWwEI> 3

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THE ENVIRONMENTAL RULE OF LAW

the legal framework of procedural and substantive rights and

obligations that incorporates the principles of ecologically
sustainable development in the rule of law

– IUCN World Declaration on the Environmental Rule of Law (2016)

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Source: IUCN <goo.gl/cZw8dw> 4

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THE ENVIRONMENTAL RULE OF LAW

strengthening the environmental rule of law is the key to the

protection, conservation, and restoration of environmental integrity.
Without it, environmental governance and the enforcement of
rights and obligations may be arbitrary, subjective, and unpredictable

– IUCN World Declaration on the Environmental Rule of Law (2016)

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Source: IUCN <goo.gl/cZw8dw> 5

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KEY GOVERNANCE ELEMENTS OF
THE ENVIRONMENTAL RULE OF LAW, EG
Development, Respect for Measures to Effective rules on Environmental Use of best-
enactment, and human rights, ensure effective equal access to auditing and available scientific
implementation of including the right compliance with information, public reporting, together knowledge
clear, strict, to a safe, clean, laws, regulations, and participation in with other effective
enforceable, and healthy, and policies, including decision-making, and accountability,
effective laws, sustainable adequate criminal, access to justice transparency, ethics,
regulations, and environment civil, and
integrity and anti-
administrative
policies that are corruption
enforcement, liability
efficiently mechanisms
for environmental
administered damage, and
through fair and mechanisms for
inclusive processes timely, impartial, and
to achieve the independent dispute
highest standards of resolution
environmental
quality

Source: IUCN <goo.gl/cZw8dw> 6

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PRINCIPLES FOR PROMOTING AND ACHIEVING
ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE THROUGH THE ENVIRONMENTAL
RULE OF LAW (1)
Obligation to Protect
Nature
Each State, public or
private entity, and
individual has the
obligation to care for and
promote the well-being
of nature, regardless of its
worth to humans, and to
place limits on its use and
exploitation.
Source: IUCN <goo.gl/cZw8dw>
Right to Nature and
Rights of Nature
Each human and other
living being has a right to
the conservation,
protection, and
restoration of the health
and integrity of
ecosystems. Nature has
the inherent right to
exist, thrive, and evolve.
Ecological Sustainability
Right to Environment
and Resilience
Each human, present Legal and other measures
and future, has the right shall be taken to protect
to a safe, clean, healthy, and restore ecosystem
and sustainable integrity and to sustain and
environment. enhance the resilience of
social-ecological systems. In
the drafting of policies and
legislation, and in decision-
making, the maintenance of
a healthy biosphere for
nature and humanity
should be a primary
consideration.
In Dubio Pro Natura
In cases of doubt, all matters
before courts, administrative
agencies, and other decision-
makers shall be resolved in a way
most likely to favour the
protection and conservation of
the environment, with preference
to be given to alternatives that are
least harmful to the environment.
Actions shall not be undertaken
when their potential adverse
impacts on the environment are
disproportionate or excessive in
relation to the benefits derived
therefrom.
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PRINCIPLES FOR PROMOTING AND ACHIEVING
ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE THROUGH THE ENVIRONMENTAL
RULE OF LAW (2)
Ecological Functions of
Property
Any natural or legal person or
group of people, in possession or
control of land, water, or other
resources, has the duty to
maintain the essential ecological
functions associated with those
resources and refrain from
activities that would impair such
functions. Legal obligations to
restore ecological conditions of
land, water, or other resources
are binding on all owners,
occupiers, and users of a site, and
liability is not terminated by the
transfer of use or title to others.
Source: IUCN <goo.gl/cZw8dw>
Participation of Minority
Intragenerational Equity Intergenerational Equity Gender Equality
and Vulnerable Groups
There shall be a fair and The present generation Gender equality shall be The inclusion of
equitable sharing of the must ensure that the incorporated into all minority and vulnerable
benefits of nature, health, diversity, policies, decisions, and groups and perspectives
including appropriate ecological functions, and practices in recognition across generations, shall
access to ecosystem beauty of the of the often- be actively addressed
services. There shall be a environment are disproportionate impacts with regard to effective
fair and equitable sharing maintained or restored of environmental access to information,
of efforts and burdens. to provide equitable degradation on women open and inclusive
Natural resources shall be access to the benefits of and girls, and their key participation in decision-
used and managed in an the environment by each role in achieving making, and equal access
ecologically sustainable successive generation. sustainability. to justice.
manner.
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PRINCIPLES FOR PROMOTING AND ACHIEVING
ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE THROUGH THE ENVIRONMENTAL
RULE OF LAW (3)
Indigenous and Tribal
Peoples
Indigenous and tribal
peoples’ rights over, and
relationships with, their
traditional and/or
customary lands and
territories shall be
respected, with their free,
prior, and informed
consent to any activities
on or affecting their land
or resources being a key
objective.
Source: IUCN <goo.gl/cZw8dw>
Non-regression Progression
States, sub-national In order to achieve the
entities, and regional progressive development and
integration organisations enforcement of the
environmental rule of law,
shall not allow or pursue
States, sub-national entities,
actions that have the net and regional integration
effect of diminishing the organisations shall regularly
legal protection of the revise and enhance laws and
environment or of access policies in order to protect,
to environmental justice. conserve, restore, and
ameliorate the environment,
based on the most recent
scientific knowledge and
policy developments.
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MEANS OF IMPLEMENTATION OF
THE ENVIRONMENTAL RULE OF LAW, EG (1)
Monitoring and
reporting systems that
enable accurate
assessments of the state
of the environment and
the pressures on it
Source: IUCN <goo.gl/cZw8dw>
Anti-corruption Legally supported
measures, including those environmental
that address unethical management systems that
conduct and oversight take due consideration of
environmental risk and
the vulnerability of social
and economic systems in
the face of ecological
deterioration
Environmental Quantitative and
assessment, incorporating qualitative modelling and
multidimensional, visioning tools that
polycentric perspectives enable planning based on
and the complexity of best-available science and
social-ecological environmental ethics,
relationships enabling strategies and
options that remain
robust under multiple
plausible futures
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MEANS OF IMPLEMENTATION OF
THE ENVIRONMENTAL RULE OF LAW, EG (2)
Collaborative and
adaptive management and
governance that involves
stakeholders from a
range of socio-economic
and cultural backgrounds,
including local
communities, indigenous
peoples, women, the
poor, and other
traditionally marginalised
and vulnerable groups
Source: IUCN <goo.gl/cZw8dw>
Coordination Environmental legal
mechanisms such as education and capacity
regional enforcement building for all people, and
networks, intelligence especially for women, girls,
sharing, and judicial and traditional leaders of
cooperation indigenous peoples,
focusing on exchange of
knowledge on best
practices, taking into
account the relevant legal,
political, socio- economic,
cultural, and religious
aspects, as well as
recognizing common
features founded on
international norms and
standards
Harnessing new Communication
technologies and media systems enabling the
for promoting production and
environmental law dissemination of
education and access to guidelines, tool kits,
information, as well as checklists, and associated
complementary tools technical and legal
that draw on and respect implementation
customary laws and assistance
practice
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MEANS OF IMPLEMENTATION OF
THE ENVIRONMENTAL RULE OF LAW, EG (3)
Strengthening civil Addressing Enabling public interest Strengthening the
society, environmental environmental crimes in dispute resolution independence and
law associations, and the context of other concerning environmental capacity of courts in the
other non-state 
 types of crime such as 
 conservation 
 effective application and
actors that fill gaps in money laundering, and protection and interpretation of
state-based corruption, and organised upholding the rights of environmental law, and in
environmental crime future generations acting as guarantors of
governance systems the environmental rule of
law

Source: IUCN <goo.gl/cZw8dw> 12

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APPEAL TO THE WORLD COMMUNITY

States, sub-national governments, regional integration organisations and

other relevant international organisations, legislators, civil society, and
the private sector are urged to contribute to the building, maintenance,
and promotion of the environmental rule of law based, on the
aforementioned principles, as part of their shared responsibility to
present, as well as future generations.
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Source: IUCN <goo.gl/cZw8dw> 13

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QUESTIONS?

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