Principles and Concepts in International

Environmental Law
A
Hunter D., Salzman J. and Zaelke D.,
“Principles and Concepts in
International Environmental
Law,” Chapter in International
Environmental Law and Policy,
New York, Foundation Press 1998,
pp 319–326
THE FUNCTIONS OF PRINCIPLES AND CONCEPTS IN INTERNATIONAL
ENVIRONMENTAL LAW
Principles provide a framework for negotiating and implementing new and
existing agreements. Assume that you have been asked by Austria to represent
them in negotiations over a global treaty to promote the conservation and
sustainable use of the world’s forests. Which international principles or
concepts accepted in other contexts could help to reach consensus in the
context of forests? General principles are frequently repeated in different
settings. The principles apply substantively to many different international
environmental issues, but their reappearance is also critical. Countries that
have accepted a principle or an approach in one context may find it politically
expedient to accept (or difficult not to accept) the principle in another
context.

Some principles provide the rules of decision for resolving transboundary

environmental disputes. Assume that you represent Austria in a dispute over
the siting of a hazardous waste facility in the Czech Republic just five
kilometers from the border. Your scientists tell you that both air emissions and
waste discharges from the facility will harm Austria’s environment. In the
absence of any treaty, how would you argue Austria’s case? Some of the
principles outlined here place obligations on inter-State relations involving
transboundary environmental disputes. In this respect, some of the principles
described in this chapter may already be customary law, while others are
undoubtedly still ‘emerging.’ Some principles provide a framework for the
development and convergence of national and subnational environmental laws.
Assume you have been asked to provide comments on a draft environmental
law of the Philippines. What internationally accepted principles, perhaps
emanating from instruments signed by the Philippines, could you suggest be
included in the national law? Even where principles or concepts have not yet
become customary law, they can guide State practice in ways that tend to
harmonize standards and practices.

Moreover…customary law is formed by the consent of States as evidenced by

the combination of opinio juris and State practice. The elaboration of these
principles often furthers the study of state practice in ways that can help
promote the development of customary law.
Some principles assist in the integration of international environmental law
with other fields such as international trade or human rights. Assume you must
defend the United States’ unilateral ban on the import of shrimp caught
without turtle excluder devices (designed to protect endangered sea turtles)
against a challenge in the World Trade Organization. What international
environmental principles could you cite to show that your actions were
consistent with international environmental law? To justify any technical
violation of trade rules? What internationally recognized rights do individuals
have in the environmental field? Eventually some or all of these principles may
be codified into a general covenant of international environmental law. Assume
you have been asked to begin drafting a Universal Declaration on the
Protection of the International Environment. These principles and concepts
would provide a good starting point, as they are all rooted in existing
international environmental instruments.

…The following is an informal taxonomy of international environmental

concepts and principles organized according to their different purposes and
functions in the field. Some of the principles serve more than one function
[adapted from Table 1 in Hunter et al. p 325].

Principles Shaping Global Environmental and Developmental Instruments

A. Right to Life and a Healthy Environment

B. State Sovereignty
C. Right to Development
D. Sustainable Development
E. Common Heritage of Humankind
F. Common Concern
G. The Obligation Not to Cause Environmental Harm
H. Intergenerational and Intragenerational Equity
I. Common but Differentiated Responsibilities
J. Precautionary Principle
K. Duty to Assess (Environmental Impact Assessment)
L. Principle of Subsidiary

Principles Relating to Transboundary Environmental Disputes

A. Peaceful Resolution of Disputes
B. Good Neighborliness and Duty to Cooperate
C. The Duty Not to Cause Environmental Harm
D. State Responsibility
E. Duty to Notify and Consult
F. Environmental Impact Assessment
G. Equitable Utilization of Shared Resources
H. Non-discrimination of Environmental Harms
I. Equal Right of Access to Justice
Principles for Developing National Environmental Laws
A. Duty to Implement Effective Environmental Legislation
B. Polluter and User Pays Principle
C. Pollution Prevention
D. Public Participation
E. Access to Information
Principles Governing International Institutions
A. Environmental Impact Assessment
B. Access to Information
C. Public Participation
CODIFICATION AND SOURCES OF INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL
PRINCIPLES
Many international policy makers recognize the need for further elaboration
and clarification of basic principles in international environmental law,
including the eventual 128 how would you argue Austria’s case? Some of the
principles outlined here place obligations on inter-State relations involving
transboundary environmental disputes. In this respect, some of the principles
described in this chapter may already be customary law, while others are
undoubtedly still ‘emerging.’ Some principles provide a framework for the
development and convergence of national and subnational environmental laws.
Assume you have been asked to provide comments on a draft environmental
law of the Philippines. What internationally accepted principles, perhaps
emanating from instruments signed by the Philippines, could you suggest be
included in the national law? Even where principles or concepts have not yet
become customary law, they can guide State practice in ways that tend to
harmonize standards and practices.

Moreover…customary law is formed by the consent of States as evidenced by

the combination of opinio juris and State practice. The elaboration of these
principles often furthers the study of state practice in ways that can help
promote the development of customary law.

Some principles assist in the integration of international environmental law

with other fields such as international trade or human rights. Assume you must
defend the United States’ unilateral ban on the import of shrimp caught
without turtle excluder devices (designed to protect endangered sea turtles)
against a challenge in the World Trade Organization. What international
environmental principles could you cite to show that your actions were
consistent with international environmental law? To justify any technical
violation of trade rules? What internationally recognized rights do individuals
have in the environmental field? Eventually some or all of these principles may
be codified into a general covenant of international environmental law. Assume
you have been asked to begin drafting a Universal Declaration on the
Protection of the International Environment. These principles and concepts
would provide a good starting point, as they are all rooted in existing
international environmental instruments.
…The following is an informal taxonomy of international environmental
concepts and principles organized according to their different purposes and
functions in the field. Some of the principles serve more than one function
[adapted from Table 1 in Hunter et al. p 325].

Principles Shaping Global Environmental and Developmental Instruments

A. Right to Life and a Healthy Environment
B. State Sovereignty
C. Right to Development
D. Sustainable Development
E. Common Heritage of Humankind
F. Common Concern
G. The Obligation Not to Cause Environmental Harm
H. Intergenerational and Intragenerational Equity
I. Common but Differentiated Responsibilities
J. Precautionary Principle
K. Duty to Assess (Environmental Impact Assessment)
L. Principle of Subsidiary

Principles Relating to Transboundary Environmental Disputes

A. Peaceful Resolution of Disputes
B. Good Neighborliness and Duty to Cooperate
C. The Duty Not to Cause Environmental Harm
D. State Responsibility
E. Duty to Notify and Consult
F. Environmental Impact Assessment
G. Equitable Utilization of Shared Resources
H. Non-discrimination of Environmental Harms
I. Equal Right of Access to Justice
Principles for Developing National Environmental Laws
A. Duty to Implement Effective Environmental
Legislation
B. Polluter and User Pays Principle
C. Pollution Prevention
D. Public Participation
E. Access to Information
Principles Governing International Institutions
A. Environmental Impact Assessme nt
B. Access to Information
C. Public Participation
CODIFICATION AND SOURCES OF INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL
PRINCIPLES
Many international policy makers recognize the need for further elaboration
and clarification of basic principles in international environmental law,
including the eventual 129 codification of a set of binding international
environmental principles…
A few international environmental instruments are particularly important as
sources of these principles and concepts. For example, the Rio Declaration,
though not binding law, does reflect an important recent consensus of most
countries regarding how environment and development should be integrated,
and its principles are often the starting point for current international
negotiations. The Rio Declaration and other efforts to identify international
environmental concepts and principles are described briefly below.

The 1972 Stockholm Declaration remains important for the development of

international environmental law. It was the first widely accepted effort to set
forth basic concepts and principles, including the importance of integrating
environment and development, of reducing or eliminating pollution, and of
controlling the use of renewable and non-renewable resources. Without using
the term, it helped lay the groundwork for the subsequent development of the
concept of sustainable development. In many ways, the Stockholm Declaration
is a more visionary statement than the Rio Declaration that would come twenty
years later.

Two specific elements of the Stockholm Declaration are worth noting with
respect to the elaboration of international environmental law principles. First,
Principle 1 of the Declaration at least implicitly suggested that there was a
human right to a healthy environment. Principle 21 strikes a balance between a
State’s sovereignty and its obligation not to cause harm to the environment of
another State or of the global commons. It is widely viewed as reflecting
customary international law, and is perhaps the most well known of all
international environmental principles.

The 1982 World Charter for Nature

As the ten-year anniversary of Stockholm neared, many observers saw the need
for a broad set of principles to reshape humanity’s relationship to the natural
environment. Zaire recommended to the UN General Assembly that they review
a draft Charter previously developed by the IUCN, an international NGO that
includes both environmental groups and wildlife agencies of governments. IUCN
completed their draft in 1975, and worked to build support for it among
governments. In 1982, the UN General Assembly adopted the World Charter for
Nature with one dissenting vote (the United States)…Eighteen countries also
abstained, including a group of Latin American nations who saw the World
Charter as a violation of their permanent sovereignty over natural resources.
The United States has never endorsed the World char t e r, nor is it binding law
even for those States that signed it. Nonetheless, the Charter remains an
important soft law instrument in the further development of international
environmental law principles, particularly as they relate to nature
conservation…

The 1987 WCED Experts Group on Environmental Law

As part of its overall effort in reviewing development issues and the prospects
for sustainable development, which culminated in the publication of Our
Common Future, the World Commission on Environment and Development
(WCED) established an Experts Group on Environmental Law. The main
guidelines for the work of the Experts Group were:

1. to reinforce existing legal principles and to formulate new principles and

rules of law which reflect and support the mainly anticipatory and preventive
strategies which the Commission is committed to developing;
2. to give special attention to legal principles and rules which ought to be in
place now or before the year 2000;
3. to consider not only principles regarding obligations of States to reduce or
avoid activities affecting the environment of other States, but also principles
regarding the individual and collective responsibilities of States concerning
future generations, other species and ecosystems of international significance
and the global commons;
4. to prepare proposals for strengthening the legal and institutional framework
for accelerating the development and application of international law in
support of environmental protection and sustainable development within and
among all States.
…The Experts Group’s principles were annexed to the WCED’S Report, Our
Common Future. Among the principles were eight general principles, including
for example a human right to a healthy environment as well as an obligation
that States conserve the environment for the benefit of present and future
generations, and twelve principles relating to transboundary natural resources
and environmental interferences. These transboundary principles envisioned
the reasonable and equitable use of shared resources and set forth a number of
procedural principles for transboundary environmental cooperation… In
addition to this set of principles elaborated as “Elements for a Draft
Convention on Environmental Protection and Sustainable Development,” the
Experts Group also recommended that the United Nations prepare a new
and legally-binding universal convention that “should consolidate existing and
establish new legal principles, and set out the associated rights and
responsibilities of States individually and collectively for securing
environmental protection and sustainable development to the year 2000 and
beyond.” Writing in 1987, the WCED Experts Group recommended that such a
convention be prepared in time to open for signature at the 1992 Rio
Conference. The WCED’s final report, Our Common Future, supported the
Experts Group recommendation…Although progress toward such a convention
has been halting, the WCED Experts Group’s thorough analysis and research
supporting and explaining each principle has helped to build support for an
eventual elaboration of a binding covenant regarding environmental law.

The 1992 Rio Declaration

[T]he Rio Declaration is probably most remarkable for its integration of
development concerns with environmental protection. From a strictly
environmental perspective, some actually view it as a step backwards from
either the Stockholm Declaration or the World Charter for Nature. On the
other hand, by explicitly tackling the relationship between environment and
development and particularly by reflecting the South’s concerns over poverty
alleviation and economic equity, the Rio Declaration is a more realistic
appraisal of the current consensus on international environmental protection
and sustainable development. Because of the careful compromises found within
so many of the Rio Declaration’s principles, it is often viewed as the starting
point for discussions concerning specific principles…
E ven where principles or concepts have not yet
become customary law, they can guide State practice in
ways that tend to harmonize standards and practices.

E ven where principles or concepts have not yet

become customary law, they can guide State practice in
ways that tend to harmonize standards and practices.
The 1995 IUCN Draft Covenant on Environment and Development
Taking a lead from the WCED’s Legal Experts Group’s recommendation, the
IUCN Commission on
Environmental Law began in 1989 to prepare a DraftInternational Covenant on
Environment and Development,which they offered as a proposal for a
universally binding treaty to cover environment and development issues. The
IUCN Draft Covenant is another important elaboration of environment and
development principles, the result of an intense, six-year negotiation by
international environmental law experts from around the world. The result is a
visionary proposal for a future covenant, and one
that is being promoted by the IUCN and other international organizations and
governments…
The feasibility and desirability of codifying international environmental law
into a general international environmental law covenant is hotly debated.
Among the reasons given against codification are: that the
process would take a long time, be contentious and result in a weak covenant,
and that a general treaty would not assist in any specific context.

The IUCN Draft Covenant’s foreword explains some of the reasons in favor of a
binding international agreement:
• to provide the legal framework to support the further integration of the
various aspects of environment and development;
• to create an agreed single set of fundamental principles like a “code of
conduct”, as used in many
civil law, socialist and theocratic traditions, which may guide States,
intergovernmental organizations,
and individuals;
• to consolidate into a single juridical framework the vast body of widely
accepted, but disparate, principles
of “soft law” on environment and development (many of which are now
declaratory of customary
international law);
• to facilitate institutional and other linkages to be made between existing
treaties and their
implementation;
• to reinforce the consensus on basic legal norms, both internationally, where
not all States are party to all
environmental treaties, even though the principles embodied in them are
universally subscribed to, and
nationally, where administrative jurisdiction is often fragmented among diverse
agencies and the
legislation still has gaps;
• to fill in gaps in international law, by placing in a global context principles
which only appear in certain places and by adding matters which are of
fundamental importance but which are not in any universal treaty;
• to help level the playing field for international trade by minimizing the
likelihood of non-tariff barriers
based on vastly differing environmental and developmental policies;
• to save on scarce resources and diplomatic time by consolidating in one single
instrument norms, which
thereafter can be incorporated by reference into future131 agreements,
thereby eliminating unnecessary
reformulation and repetition, unless such reformulation is considered
necessary; and
• to lay out a common basis upon which future lawmaking efforts might be
developed.
6
Questions for Discussion
(a) What is the desirable relationship between meeting the needs of the
present generation and meeting the needs of future generations? How do we
decide what future needs are? Does this discussion include sensitivity to
“intragenerational equity,” which seeks a desirable relationship between the
needs of different members of the present generation with wildly differing
standards of living?
(b) Consider the various legal, moral, institutional, and procedural measures
available to change the
relationships in ways you recommend.
(c) What can be done to further education about environmental ethics and
environmental ethics and
environmental science?
(d)What effect does free market economics and short-term evaluation of
profit/loss have on long-term and
ethical considerations?
(e) Identify the key sources of national environmental law in your jurisdiction.
Is the current legal and
institutional structure likely to facilitate sustainable development?
(f ) Identify the key principles of international law related to sustainable
development.
(g) Discuss the arguments for and against the Draft IUCN
Covenant on Environment and Development as a global “umbrella” convention
for sustainable development.
7
References for Chapter 2
Albertyn C., “Environmental Justice: An NGO Perspective,” Conference
Proceedings, Environmental Justice.
Birnie P.W. and Boyle A.E., International Law and the Environment, Clarendon
Press, Oxford, 1992.
Boer B., Fowler R., and Cunningham N. (eds),
Environmental Outlook—Law and Policy, The Federation Press, Sydney, 1996.
Boomer v Atlantic Cement Company 26 N.Y. 2d 219, 1970.
Boswell J., Life of Samuel Johnson, Richardson, 1873.
Campbell-Mohn C., Breen B., Futrell J.W., McElfish J.M. Jnr,
Grant P., Sustainable Development Law, West Publ i shi ng Co., 1993.
Carson R., Silent Spring, Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1962.
Chevron v Natural Resources Defense Council 467 US 837, 1989.
Citizens to Preserve Overton Park v Volpe 401 US 402, 1971.
The Committee on the United States in a Global Economy, “Harmonizing and
Coordinating the Economic Law of Nations: A Comparative Study,” 49 The
Record of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York 800, 1994.
Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna
and Flora (CITES), March 3 1973, 27 U.S.T. 1087, T.I.A.S. No. 8249.
Convention on Biological Diversity, June 5, 1992, S. Treaty Doc. No. 20, 1993,
reprinted in 31 I.L.M. 818,824.
County of Freeborn v William H. Bryson 309 Minn. 178, 243 N.W. 2d 316, 1976.
Darwin C.R., The Descent of Man and Selections in Relation to Sex, Princeton
Univ. Press 1981 (1871).
Deketelaere K., Public Environmental Law in Belgium in General and in the
Flemmish Region in Particular,” in Comparative European Environmental Law.
Emerson R.W., Nature, Houghton, Mifflin and Co., 1902.
Endangered Species Act, 1973 (ESA), 16 U.S.C.A. 1531 to 1544, 1994.
Experts Group on Environmental Law of the World Commission on Environment
and Development,
Environmental Protection and Sustainable Development,
Chairman’s Introduction, 1987.
Hofrichter R., ‘Introduction’ in Hofrichter R (ed), Tox i c
Struggles: The Theory and Practice of Environmental
Justice, 1993, 4.
Lazarus R.J., “The Meaning and Promotion of Environmental Justice,” 5 Modern
Journal of Legal
Issues, 1, 1984.
Leopold A., A Sand County Almanac, Oxford, 1987 (1949). Leopold A., Game
Management, Univ. of Wisconsin Press, 1986. Manwood, Forest Laws, Printed
for the Societie of Stationers, 1615.
National Audubon Society v The Superior Court of Alpine County and the Dept.
of Water and Power of the City of Los Angeles 33 Cal. 3 rd 419, 658 P. 2d 709,
1983, cert. Den. 464 US, 979.
Neustadt R.E. and May E.R., Thinking in Time: The Uses of History for Decision
Makers, The Free Press, N.Y., 1986.
Owen Saunders J. (ed), The Legal Challenge of Sustainable Development,
Canadian Institute of Resources Law, Calgary, 1990.
“The People’s Voices, Executive Summary,” National Speak Out on Poverty
Hearings, March–June, 1998,
SANGOCO 1.
Pierson v. Post, 3 Cai. R. 175 (N.Y. Sup. Ct. 1805).
Poverty and the Environment in South Africa, SANGOCO, Publications Series
No. 4, 1998.
Robinson N., Comparative Environmental Law and Regulation, Oceania, 1996.
Robinson N., “EIA Abroad: The Comparative and Transnational Experience,” in
Hildebrand S.G. and
Cannon J.B., Environmental Analysis: The NEPA Experience, Lewis, 1993.
Scenic Hudson Preservation Conference v Federal Power Commission 354 F. 2d
608 (2d Cir. 1965) cert. den. 384 US 941, 1966.
Schweitzer A., Civilization and Ethics, A. & C. Black, Ltd., 1923.
Schweitzer A., Reverence for Life, Reginald H. Fuller trans., Harper & Row
1969.
Sierra Club v. Morton 405 US 727, 92 S.Ct. 1361, 1972.
State of Wisconsin v Norbert W. Mauthe and Wisconsi Chromium Corporation
124 Wisc. 2d 288, 366 N.W. 2d 871, 1985.
Stevens v Rockport Granite Company 216 Mass. 486, 104 N.E. 371, 1914.
Stone C., “Should Trees Have Standing? Towards Legal Rights for Natural
Objects,” 45 Southern California Law Review 45, 1972.
Stone C., Should Trees Have Standing? And Other Essays on Law, Morals and
the Environment, Oceania, New York, 1997.
Tennessee Valley Authority v Hill 437 US, 153, 1978. Union Electric Co. v
Environmental Protection Agency 427 US, 246, 1976.
Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Corporation v Natural Resources Defense
Council 435 U.S. 360 (1989).
World Commission on Environment and Development, Our Common Future,
Oxford University Press, 1987.
8
Additional References
Agenda 21, annotated in N.A Robinson (ed), Agenda 21: Earth’s Action Plan,
Oceana Publications, Dobbs Ferry, New York 1973.
Asian Development Bank, Rural Poverty in Asia: Priority Issues and Policy
Options, edited by M.G. Quibria, 1993.
Beazley Mitchell, Caring for the Earth: A Strategy for Survival, IUCN, UNEP,
WWF, London, 1993.
Bosslemann K., When Two Worlds Collide: Society and Ecology, RSVP
Publishing, Auckland, 1995.
Robinson N.A., “SELL Abroad: The Comparative and Transnational Experience,”
in Environmental Analysis:
The NEPA Experience, Oak Ridge National Laboratories, CRC Press, Boca Raton,
Florida, 1991.
Thomas R.M. (ed), “Teaching Ethics,” Vol. 3, Environmental Ethics, Centre for
Business and Private Sector Ethics, Cambridge University, HMSO, London, 1996.
Earth Charter:
Source: http://jnevill.customer.netspace.net.au/Env_principles_EarthCharter.htm

The Earth Charter is an initiative of the United Nations. The program to develop and
ratify the Charter (containing comprehensive general sustainability principles) began in
1987, with the intention that an agreed wording be ratified by the Johannesburg
Environmental Summit in 2002. The Charter now has wide support amongs t communities
of the world, but in part runs counter to several policies and programs of various Nation-
State governments, including the current (John Howard) Australian government. The
Earth Charter did not (unfortunately) receive wide support by government representatives
at the 2002 Summit.

Earth Charter website

PRINCIPLES

I. RESPECT AND CARE FOR THE COMMUNITY OF LIFE

1. Respect Earth and life in all its diversity.

a. Recognize that all beings are interdependent and every form of life has value regardless of its
worth to human beings.

b. Affirm faith in the inherent dignity of all human beings and in the intellectual, artistic, ethical,
and spiritual potential of humanity.

2. Care for the community of life with understanding, compassion, and love.

a. Accept that with the right to own, manage, and use natural resources comes the duty to
prevent environmental harm and to protect the rights of people.

b. Affirm that with increased freedom, knowledge, and power comes increased responsibility to
promote the common good.

3. Build democratic societies that are just, participatory, sustainable, and peaceful.

a. Ensure that communities at all levels guarantee human rights and fundamental freedoms and
provide everyone an opportunity to realize his or her full potential.

b. Promote social and economic justice, enabling all to achieve a secure and meaningful livelihood
that is ecologically responsible.
4. Secure Earth's bounty and beauty for present and future generations.

a. Recognize that the freedom of action of each generation is qualified by the needs of future
generations.

b. Transmit to future generations values, traditions, and institutions that support the long-term
flourishing of Earth's human and ecological communities.

In order to fulfill these four broad commitments, it is necessary to:

II. ECOLOGICAL INTEGRITY

5. Protect and restore the integrity of Earth's ecological systems, with special concern
for biological diversity and the natural processes that sustain life.

a. Adopt at all levels sustainable development plans and regulations that make environmental
conservation and rehabilitation integral to all development initiatives.

b. Establish and safeguard viable nature and biosphere reserves, including wild lands and marine
areas, to protect Earth's life support systems, maintain biodiversity, and preserve our natural
heritage.

c. Promote the recovery of endangered species and ecosystems.

d. Control and eradicate non-native or genetically modified organisms harmful to native species
and the environment, and prevent introduction of such harmful organisms.

e. Manage the use of renewable resources such as water, soil, forest products, and marine life in
ways that do not exceed rates of regeneration and that protect the health of ecosystems.

f. Manage the extraction and use of non-renewable resources such as minerals and fossil fuels in
ways that minimize depletion and cause no serious environmental damage.

6. Prevent harm as the best method of environmental protection and, when knowledge
is limited, apply a precautionary approach.

a. Take action to avoid the possibility of serious or irreversible environmental harm even when
scientific knowledge is incomplete or inconclusive.

b. Place the burden of proof on those who argue that a proposed activity will not cause significant
harm, and make the responsible parties liable for environmental harm.
c. Ensure that decision making addresses the cumulative, long-term, indirect, long distance, and
global consequences of human activities.

d. Prevent pollution of any part of the environment and allow no build-up of radioactive, toxic, or
other hazardous substances.

e. Avoid military activities damaging to the environment.

7. Adopt patterns of production, consumption, and reproduction that safeguard Earth's

regenerative capacities, human rights, and community well- being.

a. Reduce, reuse, and recycle the materials used in production and consumption systems, and
ensure that residual waste can be assimilated by ecological systems.

b. Act with restraint and efficiency when using energy, and rely increasingly on renewable energy
sources such as solar and wind.

c. Promote the development, adoption, and equitable transfer of environmentally sound

technologies.

d. Internalize the full environmental and social costs of goods and services in the selling price, and
enable consumers to identify products that meet the highest social and environmental standards.

e. Ensure universal access to health care that fosters reproductive health and responsible
reproduction.

f. Adopt lifestyles that emphasize the quality of life and material sufficiency in a finite world.

8. Advance the study of ecological sustainability and promote the open exchange and
wide application of the knowledge acquired.

a. Support international scientific and technical cooperation on sustainability, with special attention
to the needs of developing nations.

b. Recognize and preserve the traditional knowledge and spiritual wisdom in all cultures that
contribute to environmental protection and human well-being.

c. Ensure that information of vital importance to human health and environmental protection,
including genetic information, remains available in the public domain.

III. SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC JUSTICE

9. Eradicate poverty as an ethical, social, and environmental imperative.

a. Guarantee the right to potable water, clean air, food security, uncontaminated soil, shelter, and
safe sanitation, allocating the national and international resources required.

b. Empower every human being with the education and resources to secure a sustainable
livelihood, and provide social security and safety nets for those who are unable to support
themselves.

c. Recognize the ignored, protect the vulnerable, serve those who suffer, and enable them to
develop their capacities and to pursue their aspirations.

10. Ensure that economic activities and institutions at all levels promote human
development in an equitable and sustainable manner.

a. Promote the equitable distribution of wealth within nations and among nations.

b. Enhance the intellectual, financial, technical, and social resources of developing nations, and
relieve them of onerous international debt.

c. Ensure that all trade supports sustainable resource use, environmental protection, and
progressive labor standards.

d. Require multinational corporations and international financial organizations to act transparently

in the public good, and hold them accountable for the consequences of their activities.

11. Affirm gender equality and equity as prerequisites to sustainable development and
ensure universal access to education, health care, and economic opportunity.

a. Secure the human rights of women and girls and end all violence against them.

b. Promote the active participation of women in all aspects of economic, political, civil, social, and
cultural life as full and equal partners, decision makers, leaders, and beneficiaries.

c. Strengthen families and ensure the safety and loving nurture of all family members.

12. Uphold the right of all, without discrimination, to a natural and social environment
supportive of human dignity, bodily health, and spiritual well-being, with special
attention to the rights of indigenous peoples and minorities.

a. Eliminate discrimination in all its forms, such as that based on race, color, sex, sexual
orientation, religion, language, and national, ethnic or social origin.

b. Affirm the right of indigenous peoples to their spirituality, knowledge, lands and resources and
to their related practice of sustainable livelihoods.

c. Honor and support the young people of our communities, enabling them to fulfill their essential
role in creating sustainable societies.
d. Protect and restore outstanding places of cultural and spiritual significance.

IV. DEMOCRACY, NONVIOLENCE, AND PEACE

13. Strengthen democratic institutions at all levels, and provide transparency and
accountability in governance, inclusive participation in decision making, and access to
justice.

a. Uphold the right of everyone to receive clear and timely information on environmental matters
and all development plans and activities which are likely to affect them or in which they have an
interest.

b. Support local, regional and global civil society, and promote the meaningful participation of all
interested individuals and organizations in decision making.

c. Protect the rights to freedom of opinion, expression, peaceful assembly, association, and
dissent.

d. Institute effective and efficient access to administrative and independent judicial procedures,
including remedies and redress for environmental harm and the threat of such harm.

e. Eliminate corruption in all public and private institutions.

f. Strengthen local communities, enabling them to care for their environments, and assign
environmental responsibilities to the levels of government where they can be carried out most
effectively.

14. Integrate into formal education and life- long learning the knowledge, values, and
skills needed for a sustainable way of life.

a. Provide all, especially children and youth, with educational opportunities that empower them to
contribute actively to sustainable development.

b. Promote the contribution of the arts and humanities as well as the sciences in sustainability
education.

c. Enhance the role of the mass media in raising awareness of ecological and social challenges.

d. Recognize the importance of moral and spiritual education for sustainable living.

15. Treat all living beings with respect and consideration.

a. Prevent cruelty to animals kept in human societies and protect them from suffering.

b. Protect wild animals from methods of hunting, trapping, and fishing that cause extreme,
prolonged, or avoidable suffering.

c. Avoid or eliminate to the full exent possible the taking or destruction of non-targetted species.

16. Promote a culture of tolerance, nonviolence, and peace.

a. Encourage and support mutual understanding, solidarity, and cooperation among all peoples
and within and among nations.

b. Implement comprehensive strategies to prevent violent conflict and use collaborative problem
solving to manage and resolve environmental conflicts and other disputes.

c. Demilitarize national security systems to the level of a non-provocative defense posture, and
convert military resources to peaceful purposes, including ecological restoration.

d. Eliminate nuclear, biological, and toxic weapons and other weapons of mass destruction.

e. Ensure that the use of orbital and outer space supports environmental protection and peace.

f. Recognize that peace is the wholeness created by right relationships with oneself, other
persons, other cultures, other life, Earth, and the larger whole of which all are a part.
 World Charter for Nature
_____________________________________________________________________________

Source:
http://jnevill.customer.netspace.net.au/World_charter_for_nature_1982.htm

UN GA RES 37/7

United Nations General Assembly Resolution 37/7 28 October 1982

World Charter for Nature (1982)

The General Assembly,

Reaffirming the fundamental purposes of the United Nations, in particular the

maintenance of international peace and security, the development of friendly
relations among nations and the achievement of international cooperation in
solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, technical,
intellectual or humanitarian character,

Aware that:

(a) Mankind is a part of nature and life depends on the uninterrupted functioning
of natural systems which ensure the supply of energy and nutrients,

(b) Civilization is rooted in nature, which has shaped human culture and
influenced all artistic and scientific achievements, and living in harmony with
nature gives man the best opportunities for the development of his creativity, and
for rest and recreation,

Convinced that:

(a) Every form of life is unique, warranting respect regardless of its worth to man,
and, to accord other organisms such recognition, man must be guided by a moral
code of action,

(b) Man can alter nature and exhaust natural resources by his action or its
consequences and, therefore, must fully recognize the urgency of maintaining the
stability and quality of nature and of conserving natural resources,

Persuaded that:

(a) Lasting benefits from nature depend upon the maintenance of essential
ecological processes and life support systems, and upon the diversity of life
forms, which are jeopardized through excessive exploitation and habitat
destruction by man,

(b) The degradation of natural systems owing to excessive consumption and

misuse of natural resources, as well as to failure to establish an appropriate
economic order among peoples and among States, leads to the breakdown of the
economic, social and political framework of civilization,

(c) Competition for scarce resources creates conflicts, whereas the conservation
of nature and natural resources contributes to justice and the maintenance of
peace and cannot be achieved until mankind learns to live in peace and to
forsake war and armaments,

Reaffirming that man must acquire the knowledge to maintain and enhance his
ability to use natural resources in a manner which ensures the preservation of the
species and ecosystems for the benefit of present and future generations,

Firmly convinced of the need for appropriate measures, at the national and
international, individual and collective, and private and public levels, to protect
nature and promote international co-operation in this field,

Adopts, to these ends, the present World Charter for Nature, which proclaims the
following principles of conservation by which all human conduct affecting nature
is to be guided and judged.

I. GENERAL PRINCIPLES

1. Nature shall be respected and its essential processes shall not be impaired.

2. The genetic viability on the earth shall not be compromised; the population
levels of all life forms, wild and domesticated, must be at least sufficient for their
survival, and to this end necessary habitat shall be safeguarded.

3. All areas of the earth, both land and sea, shall be subject to these principles of
conservation; special protection shall be given to unique areas, to representative
samples of all the different types of ecosystems and to the habitat of rare or
endangered species.

4. Ecosystems and organisms, as well as the land, marine and atmospheric

resources that are utilized by man, shall be managed to achieve and maintain
optimum sustainable productivity, but not in such a way as to endanger the
integrity of those other ecosystems or species with which they coexist.

5. Nature shall be secured against degradation caused by warfare or other hostile

activities.

II. FUNCTIONS

6. In the decision-making process it shall be recognized that man's needs can be

met only by ensuring the proper functioning of natural systems and by respecting
the principles set forth in the present Charter.

7. In the planning and implementation of social and economic development

activities, due account shall be taken of the fact that the conservation of nature is
an integral part of those activities.

8. In formulating long-term plans for economic development, population growth

and the improvement of standards of living, due account shall be taken of the
long-term capacity of natural systems to ensure the subsistence and settlement
of the populations concerned, recognizing that this capacity may be enhanced
through science and technology.

9. The allocation of areas of the earth to various uses shall be planned and due
account shall be taken of the physical constraints, the biological productivity and
diversity and the natural beauty of the areas concerned.

10. Natural resources shall not be wasted, but used with a restraint appropriate to
the principles set forth in the present Charter, in accordance with the following
rules:

(a) Living resources shall not be utilized in excess of their natural capacity for
regeneration;

(b) The productivity of soils shall be maintained or enhanced through measures

which safeguard their long-term fertility and the process of organic
decomposition, and prevent erosion and all other forms of degradation;

(c) Resources, including water, which are not consumed as they are used shall
be reused or recycled;

(d) Non-renewable resources which are consumed as they are used shall be
exploited with restraint, taking into account their abundance, their rational
possibilities of converting them for consumption, and the compatibility of their
exploitation with the functioning of natural systems.

11. Activities which might have an impact on nature shall be controlled, and the
best available technologies that minimize significant risks to nature or other
adverse effects shall be used; in particular:

(a) Activities which are likely to cause irreversible damage to nature shall be
avoided;

(b) Activities which are likely to pose a significant risk to nature shall be preceded
by an exhaustive examination; their proponents shall demonstrate that expected
benefits outweigh potential damage to nature, and where potential adverse
effects are not fully understood, the activities should not proceed;

(c) Activities which may disturb na ture shall be preceded by assessment of their
consequences, and environmental impact studies of development projects shall
be conducted sufficiently in advance, and if they are to be undertaken, such
activities shall be planned and carried out so as to minimize potential adverse
effects;

(d) Agriculture, grazing, forestry and fisheries practices shall be adapted to the
natural characteristics and constraints of given areas;

(e) Areas degraded by human activities shall be rehabilitated for purposes in

accord with their natural potential and compatible with the well-being of affected
populations.

12. Discharge of pollutants into natural systems shall be avoided and:

(a) Where this is not feasible, such pollutants shall be treated at the source, using
the best practicable means available;

(b) Special precautions shall be taken to prevent discharge of radioactive or toxic

wastes.

13. Measures intended to prevent, control or limit natural disasters, infestations

and diseases shall be specifically directed to the causes of these scourges and
shall avoid averse side-effects on nature.

III. IMPLEMENTATION

14. The principles set forth in the present Charter shall be reflected in the law and
practice of each State, as well as at the international level.

15. Knowledge o f nature shall be broadly disseminated by all possible means,

particularly by ecological education as an integral part of general education.

16. All planning shall include, among its essential elements, the formulation of
strategies for the conservation of nature, the establishment of inventories of
ecosystems and assessments of the effects on nature of proposed policies and
activities; all of these elements shall be disclosed

to the public by appropriate means in time to permit effective consultation and

participation.

17. Funds, programmes and administrative structures necessary to achieve the

objective of the conservation of nature shall be provided.

18. Constant efforts shall be made to increase knowledge of nature by scientific

research and to disseminate such knowledge unimpeded by restrictions of any
kind.

19. The status of natural processes, ecosystems and species shall be closely
monitored to enable early detection of degradation or threat, ensure timely
intervention and facilitate the evaluation of conservation policies and methods.

20. Military activities damaging to nature shall be avoided.

21. States and, to the extent they are able, other public authorities, international
organizations, individuals, groups and corporations shall:

(a) Co-operate in the task of conserving nature through common activities and
other relevant actions, including information exchange and consultations;

(b) Establish standards for products and other manufacturing processes that may
have adverse effects on nature, as well as agreed methodologies for assessing
these effects;

(c) Implement the applicable international legal provisions for the conservation of
nature and the protection of the environment;

(d) Ensure that activities within their jurisdictions or control do not cause damage
to the natural systems located within other States or in the areas beyond the
limits of national jurisdiction;

(e) Safeguard and conserve nature in areas beyond national jurisdiction.

22. Taking fully into account the sovereignty of States ove r their natural
resources, each State shall give effect to the provisions of the present Charter
through its competent organs and in co-operation with other States.

23. All persons, in accordance with their national legislation, shall have the
opportunity to participate, individually or with others, in the formulation of
decisions of direct concern to their environment, and shall have access to means
of redress when their environment has suffered damage or degradation.

24. Each person has a duty to act in accordance with the provisions of the
present Charter, acting individually, in association with others or through
participation in the political process. Each person shall strive to ensure that the
objectives and requirements of the present Charter are met.

Appendix to main document: Extract from Background Paper 2, Australia’s Oceans Policy.

18.8. WORLD CHARTER FOR NATURE 1982

Adopted by United Nations General Assembly Resolution 37/7 28 October 1982

The World Charter for Nature proclaims general principles of conservation `by which all human conduct affecting nature is to be
guided and judged' (Preamble). The principles call for: nature to be respected and its essential processes not to be impaired; the
maintenance of genetic viability and protection of habitats; special protection for unique areas; management of ecosystems and
organisms to achieve and maintain `optimum sustainable productivity'; and the protection of nature against destruction caused by
warfare and hostilities.

The Charter emphasises the importance of consideration for natural systems in the planning and implementation of social and
economic development activities. Article II stipulates that natural resources shall not be wasted, but used with a restraint
appropriate to the principles set forth in the Charter; activities which might impact on nature shall be controlled and risks minimised
by use of the best available technologies; discharge of pollutants shall be avoided wherever possible; and natural disaster or
disease prevention measures shall avoid adverse side effects on nature.

Implications for Australian oceans policy

The World Charter for Nature is a non-binding international instrument which articulates most provisions in a general way. Thus,
the instrument does not directly im pose obligations on Australia. However, since the Charter was adopted by the General
Assembly, many of its principles have been developed further in other international legal instruments and are reflected widely in
municipal law. Such development is consistent with Article III of the Charter which provides that `[t]he principles set forth in the
present Charter shall be reflected in the law and practice of each state, as well as at the international level'. Also, despite its non -
binding nature, the Charter declares that `[e]ach person has a duty to act in accordance with the provisions of the present Charter;
acting individually, in association with others or through participation in the political process, each person shall strive to ensure that
the objectives and requirements of the present Charter are met'.

World Charter for Nature

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

This data access service is provided by the Consortium for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN), which
operates the Socioeconomic Data and Applications Center (SEDAC) for the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

Administration (NASA).

http://sedac.ciesin.org/pidb/texts/world.charter.for.nature.1982.html

Environmental Treaties and Resource Indicators (ENTRI) -- Full Text File

See the ENT RI query system for information about the status of this treaty.

See the ENTRI thematic guide for more information about the relationships between environmental treaties, national resource
indicators, and remotely sensed
data.___________________________________________________________________________
Rio Declaration on the Environment and
Development (1992): extract
Source: http://jnevill.customer.netspace.net.au/Rio_declaration_principles.htm
Preamble

The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development,

Having met at Rio de Janeiro from 3 to 14 June 1992,

Reaffirming the Declaration of the United Nations Conference on the Human

Environment, adopted at Stockholm on 16 June 1972, and seeking to build upon
it,

With the goal of establishing a new and equitable global partnership through the
creation of new levels of cooperation among States, key sectors of societies and
people,

Working towards international agreements which respect the interests of all and
protect the integrity of the global environmental and developmental system,

Recognizing the integral and interdependent nature of the Earth, our home,

Proclaims that:

Principle 1

Human beings are at the centre of concerns for sustainable development. They
are entitled to a healthy and productive life in harmony with nature.

Principle 2

States have, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and the
principles of international law, the sovereign right to exploit their own resources
pursuant to their own environmental and developmental policies, and the
responsibility to ensure that activities within their jurisdiction or control do not
cause damage to the environment of other States or of areas beyond the limits of
national jurisdiction.

Principle 3

The right to development must be fulfilled so as to equitably meet developmental

and environmental needs of present and future generations.
Principle 4

In order to achieve sustainable development, environmental protection shall

constitute an integral part of the development process and cannot be considered
in isolation from it.

Principle 5

All States and all people shall cooperate in the essential task of eradicating
poverty as an indispensable requirement for sustainable development, in order to
decrease the disparities in standards of living and better meet the needs of the
majority of the people of the world.

Principle 6

The special situation and needs of developing countries, particularly the least
developed and those most environmentally vulnerable, shall be given special
priority. International actions in the field of environment and development should
also address the interests and needs of all countries.

Principle 7

States shall cooperate in a spirit of global partnership to conserve, protect and

restore the health and integrity of the Earth's ecosystem. In view of the different
contributions to global environmental degradation, States have common but
differentiated responsibilities. The developed countries acknowledge the
responsibility that they bear in the international pursuit of sustainable
development in view of the pressures their societies place on the global
environment and of the technologies and financial resources they command.

Principle 8

To achieve sustainable development and a higher quality of life for all people,
States should reduce and eliminate unsustainable patterns of production and
consumption and promote appropriate demographic policies.

Principle 9

States should cooperate to strengthen endogenous capacity-building for

sustainable development by improving scientific understanding through
exchanges of scientific and technological knowledge, and by enhancing the
development, adaptation, diffusion and transfer of technologies, including new
and innovative technologies.

Principle 10
Environmental issues are best handled with the participation of all concerned
citizens, at the relevant level. At the national level, each individual shall have
appropriate access to information concerning the environment that is held by
public authorities, including information on hazardous materials and activities in
their communities, and the opportunity to participate in decision- making
processes. States shall facilitate and encourage public awareness and participation
by making information widely available. Effective access to judicial and
administrative proceedings, including redress and remedy, shall be provided.

Principle 11

States shall enact effective environmental legislation. Environmental standards,

management objectives and priorities should reflect the environmental and
developmental context to which they apply. Standards applied by some countries
may be inappropriate and of unwarranted economic and social cost to other
countries, in particular developing countries.

Principle 12

States should cooperate to promote a supportive and open international economic

system that would lead to economic growth and sustainable development in all
countries, to better address the problems of environmental degradation. Trade
policy measures for environmental purposes sho uld not constitute a means of
arbitrary or unjustifiable discrimination or a disguised restriction on international
trade. Unilateral actions to deal with environmental challenges outside the
jurisdiction of the importing country should be avoided. Environmental measures
addressing transboundary or global environmental problems should, as far as
possible, be based on an international consensus.

Principle 13

States shall develop national law regarding liability and compensation for the
victims of pollution and other environmental damage. States shall also cooperate
in an expeditious and more determined manner to develop further international
law regarding liability and compensation for adverse effects of environmental
damage caused by activities within their jurisdiction or control to areas beyond
their jurisdiction.

Principle 14

States should effectively cooperate to discourage or prevent the relocation and

transfer to other States of any activities and substances that cause severe
environmental degradation or are found to be harmful to human health.

Principle 15
In order to protect the environment, the precautionary approach shall be widely
applied by States according to their capabilities. Where there are threats of
serious or irreversible damage, lack of full scientific certainty shall not be used as
a reason for postponing cost-effective measures to prevent environmental
degradation.

Principle 16

National authorities should endeavour to promote the internalization of

environmental costs and the use of economic instruments, taking into account the
approach that the polluter should, in principle, bear the cost of pollution, with due
regard to the public interest and without distorting international trade and
investment.

Principle 17

Environmental impact assessment, as a national instrument, shall be undertaken

for proposed activities that are likely to have a significant adverse impact on the
environment and are subject to a decision of a competent national authority.

Principle 18

States shall immediately notify other States of any natural disasters or other
emergencies that are likely to produce sudden harmful effects on the environment
of those States. Every effort shall be made by the international community to help
States so afflicted.

Principle 19

States shall provide prior and timely notification and relevant

information to potentially affected States on activities that may have a significant
adverse transboundary environmental effect and shall consult with those States at
an early stage and in good faith.

Principle 20

Women have a vital role in environmental management and development. Their

full participation is therefore essential to achieve sustainable development.

Principle 21

The creativity, ideals and courage of the youth of the world should be mobilized
to forge a global partnership in order to achieve sustainable development and
ensure a better future for all.

Principle 22
Indigenous people and their communities, and other local communities, have a
vital role in environmental management and development because of their
knowledge and traditional practices. States should recognize and duly support
their identity, culture and interests and enable their effective participation in the
achievement of sustainable development.

Principle 23

The environment and natural resources of people under oppression, domination

and occupation shall be protected.

Principle 24

Warfare is inherently destructive of sustainable development. States shall

therefore respect international law providing protection for the environment in
times of armed conflict and cooperate in its further development, as necessary.

Principle 25

Peace, development and environmental protection are interdependent and

indivisible.

Principle 26

States shall resolve all their environmental disputes peacefully and by appropriate
means in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations.

Principle 27

States and people shall cooperate in good faith and in a spirit of partnership in the
fulfilment of the principles embodied in this Declaration and in the further
development of international law in the field of sustainable development.

Planetary stewardship:
Jon Nevill revised 12 September 2005

Source: http://jnevill.customer.netspace.net.au/planetary_stewardship.htm

Overview:

The single most important issue the world faces is the need to develop an ethic of
planetary stewardship, underpinned by a reverence for the beauty and complexity
of our "water planet" and its diversity of life forms. Without this ethic, the forces
behind our industrial consumer society are pushing global resource consumption
to higher and higher levels, eroding the
essential life support systems of the planet.

Outside nature and wilderness reserves (covering about 11% of the planet's
terrestrial areas), we have already modified and degraded almost all terrestrial
and freshwater habitats. About half of natural terrestrial ecosystems have been
destroyed (with this percentage escalating) with most of the remainder
significantly degraded. We are gradually destroying the non-human inhabitants of
our planet. The last twenty years have witnessed accelerating inroads into marine
habitats, which are now broadly approaching ecological collapse. Many coastal
ecosystems have already passed the point of collapse when compared with their
pristine state. The dramatic decline of coastal fisheries is the signal we see.

Jackson, JBC, Kirby, MX & Berger, WH (2001) 'Historical overfishing and the recent collapse of coastal ecosystems.' Science,
vol. 293, pp. 629-38.

Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (2005) Ecosystems and human well-being: synthesis, Island Press, Washington DC .

Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (2005) Ecosystems and human well-being: biodiversity synthesis, World Resources Institute,
Washington DC .

Postel, SL, Daily, GC & Ehrlich, PR (1996) 'Human appropriation of renewable freshwater', Science, vol. 271, pp. 785-8.

Rojstaczer, S, Sterling , SM & Moore , NJ (2001) 'Human appropriation of photosynthesis products', Science, vol. 294, pp. 2549-
52.

Vitousek, PM, Mooney, HA, Lubchenco, J & Melillo, JM (1997) 'Human domination of the Earth's ecosystems', Science, vol. 277,
pp. 494-9.

The planet in crisis :

Our biological world is already in crisis. Driven by an expanding human

population, together with the resource demands of our industrial-consumer
societies, the planet is facing environmental catastrophe within the lives of
children now being born.

The human effects of environmental degradation are being felt today in

ecologically fragile areas: sub-Saharan Africa, the erodible hillsides of Asia, and
waterways and coasts over much of the third world. Each year, over 15 million
children under the age of 5 die from "preventable" causes: around half from
water-borne diseases and the effects of water pollution, and around half from
diseases exacerbated by poor nutrition and outright starvation. The gap between
rich and poor continues to increase. (For more information, refer to the reports of
United Nation agencies, many available on UNEP and related web sites).

Our evolution from tribal hunter-gathers has provided us with a remarkable

ability to respond to immediate challenges. We react well to short-term problems
in our immediate vicinity. As a species, however, we do not have strong abilities
to construct effective social responses to long-term or global crises. Our survival
on this planet depends on our ability to construct cultural and institutional
mechanisms which will compensate for our inherited focus on short term
immediate issues. This is the challenge we must face today.

As a species, I think we can relate to our planet in three basic ways.

The first is as hunter-gatherers. Here we basically take what we want from our
environment. "Primitive" hunter- gatherer societies (increasingly disappearing) on
closer inspection were not primitive at all, and generally embodied cultures and
traditions which saw these societies care for their environment in various ways -
driven by spiritual values and beliefs. It is "industrial" hunter-gatherer societies
which are now out of step with the capabilities of the planet. Malaysian logging
companies, Australian fishing operations, Japanese whaling ships… are all
plundering the earth's resources.

The second way of relating is "on a business footing". In this scenario, humans
recognise that their propensity for short-term exploitation of the planet does not
bode well for their long-term survival. They recognise that they must use the
earth's resources in a 'sustainable' way. The philosophy is: "we need to look after
the productive ecosystems of the planet in order to ensure our children's'
survival".

In the third way of relating, humans develop a loving relationship with their
planet. They live in awe of its beauty, its fragility, and its power. They recognise
that, as the most powerful animals on the planet, they have a responsibility to
look after other inhabitants as well as themselves, for their own sake. Again,
through institutions and cultures, they develop programs to care for the earth and
all its life- forms, often at the expense of immediate human needs.

An example:

The largest of all cuttlefish, the Giant Australian Cuttlefish, inhabits Australia's
southern seas. Each year, around May, these impressive creatures massed in great
numbers in shallow water off Point Lowly, in the Spencer Gulf, South Australia.
For some reason, they chose this special place to meet and mate. Today, they
still gather there, although in hugely reduced numbers.

As you might expect from an "industrial hunter-gatherer" society, once this

annual massing became known, fishers took their boats and plundered the
cuttlefish. And of course it wasn't long before cuttlefish numbers dropped
dramatically.

Now the "business footing" approach came into play. The South Australian
government placed a temporary moratorium on cuttlefish harvesting within the
most concentrated spawning ground, and proclaimed restrictions on fishers to
limit their catch. These latter restrictions remain largely unenforced. (More
information on the cuttlefish of Spencer Gulf)

Is this enough? I believe that it is not. If we, as a society, could move towards
the "third" approach, how would we handle this situation? Firstly, we would
marvel at the forces which bring the animals together, with such precision in time
and place. We would marvel at the beauty and intelligence of these molluscs. We
would instantly recognise that this relatively small area is a sacred site to
cuttlefish. To the extent that cuttlefish can have such a thing, this most certainly
was, and is, a sacred place. We would recognise that only we, as humans, can
protect this site, and we would place it "out of bounds" to all harvesting
activities, for all time. Let the fishers have a good part of the rest of the ocean,
and the rest of the year, but let this area be protected as a sacred site.

And so….

In creating this web site, I wish to do something, however small, to assist us to

move towards a society in which we care for the planet because we love it. And it
is my view, though clearly I can't support it, that we need this approach. I don't
believe the "business" approach will ever be enough to protect this planet to the
extent that it will provide our species with a home for indefinite generations to
come. I believe that, unless we can love and protect the planet, we will destroy it.

Our species must learn to live in harmony with the other living inhabitants of our
planet. If we cannot place strategic limits on our incursions into the habitats of
other species, we will, I believe, destroy both their world and our world. It is
crucial to limit our human population, and limit our consumption of resources.
But this is not enough. We must, as a specie s, take this action not to protect
ourselves, but to protect other species. This action must come from a deep
respect for other forms of life, and for the beauty and diversity of this planet. Our
most serious global problems stem in large part from the fact that humans are
acting as if they own the planet.

Our intent is critical. Our intent will derive from our values, values which at
present are driven, unintentionally, by the forces of global consumerism and
media. This must change if the planet is to survive in anything like its present
beauty. As a species, we must find different values. There is not much time
left...

While mouthing concerns about sustainability, humans are killing the other living
inhabitants of our planet, and destroying the places in which they live. This is
happening across the entire globe. We are silent witnesses to the rapid destruction
of the ecosystems of our planet. By far the most important social, economic and
environmental issue of our times is the need to create a global culture of respect
for the planet. If our planet is to survive in anything like its current form, we
must also create and support political parties which will make, at our cost,
decisions which will (in the long term) reduce human population levels and
drastically reduce our impact on the other living residents of this planet.

From the point of view of the other living inhabitants of this planet, the human
population over-shot the Earth's carrying capacity sometime in the last century -
with a momentum which can be slowed but not stopped within this century.

--oo--

There is in the community a view that the conservation of biological diversity also has an
ethical basis. We share the earth with many other life forms which warrant our respect,
whether or not they are of benefit to us. Earth belongs to the future as well as the
present; no single species or generation can claim it as its own.

Source: Government of Australia (1996:2) National Strategy for the Conservation

of Australia’s Biological Diversity. Department of Environment and Heritage,
Australia; Canberra.

The Earth Charter was developed over many years following a 1987 initiative of
the United Nations. An Earth Charter Commission was formed in 1997 with help
from influential UN figures and funds from the Dutch Government. The Charter
was endorsed by the Commission in 2000, and was put to the 2002 World
Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg - with a view to it being
endorsed by the United Nations General Assembly (much as the World Charter
for Nature was in 1982). The Earth Charter is important, as it embodies an
explicit ethic of respect for the planet. Although it is a conservative document,
shying away from important issues such as the need to reduce the human
population of the planet, and the need to reform democratic governance
processes, it nevertheless has failed - so far - to get widespread government
endorsement. It has, however, wide support amongst the thinking public. I urge
you to visit the Earth Charter website, and, if you can, sign the endorsement.

Wandering in the wood, Alice heard sawing and walked that way, hopeful of
getting directions. Halfway up an oak, a hedgehog in a frock coat and silk hat was
sawing off the limb it sat on.
"I say," she cried, "you ought to stop that!" The hedgehog looked at her but kept
sawing.
"Why should I?" it snapped.
"You'll fall!"
"Why should I fall?" the hedgehog shouted, turning pink. "Explain!"
"When the limb you're sawing falls, you'll fall too," Alice replied, with, she
thought, admirable conciseness.
"That's not an explanation," the hedgehog shouted, still sawing. "It's just
proximate cause. You'll have to give ultimate cause!"
"I shall never get home for tea," Alice sighed.

Deep ecology

World Pantheist website

Henry David Thoreau

John Muir - the "first great American advocate of wilderness". Sierra Club

Aldo Leopold Foundation

Gaia theory

Marston Bates 1961

Statements of intrinsic value

Sacred sites for marine animals

Related Philosophy

Home

References (cuttlefish): Victorian Regional Ripples, newsletter of the Marine and

Coastal Community Network, June 1998, mccnvic@ozemail.com.au. Also: Pip
Moran Giant Australian Cuttlefish in Australian Geographic No.51 June 1998.