Abstract
The ultimate objective of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is the stabilization of greenhouse gases at a level that would prevent dangerous interference with the climate system. Over the past decade, a growing body of scientific and anecdotal evidence has demonstrated that significant adverse effects of climate change are already occurring in the Arctic. In turn, Arctic climate impacts have fundamentally altered the Inuit’s way of life, which is intimately tied to the physical environment. This article argues that changes to the Inuit’s means of subsistence, property, cultural heritage, enjoyment of natural resources and movement, among others, constitute human rights violations. Those human rights violations, when combined with other global consequences of Arctic climate impacts, indicate that the Parties to the UNFCCC are not meeting their international legal obligations. As a consequence, the author submits that the Parties to the UNFCCC should re-examine their negotiating positions to determine what level of greenhouse gas stabilization will prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system. In making that determination, human rights must be considered.
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Acknowledgments
The author would like to acknowledge Sheila Watt-Cloutier, former Chair of the Inuit Circumpolar Conference; Don Goldberg, former President of the Climate Law and Policy Project; and Martin Wagner, Director and Managing Attorney of Earthjustice’s International Program, whose ideas and hard work have contributed to bringing a human rights approach to climate change. The author would also like to thank Alyssa Johl, former Staff Attorney of the Climate Law and Policy Project and Sarah A. Mason-Case, Associate Fellow with the Centre for International Sustainable Development Law for excellent research assistance.
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Crowley, P. Interpreting ‘dangerous’ in the United Nations framework convention on climate change and the human rights of Inuit. Reg Environ Change 11 (Suppl 1), 265–274 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10113-010-0188-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10113-010-0188-3