At COP-28 in Dubai, STF president defends global cooperation to reduce the effects of climate change

10/12/2023

The president of the Federal Supreme Court, Justice Luís Roberto Barroso, took part this Sunday (10/12) in two events related to the 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP-28, in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates. At the world's main environmental conference, Barroso defended the need to find a transnational solution to mitigate the effects of climate change.

In the morning, the president of the STF spoke on the panel "Climate Change and Judges: Judicial Perspectives on Climate Litigation", alongside Minister Herman Benjamin, of the Superior Court of Justice (STJ), and Ambassador André Corrêa do Lago, Brazil's chief negotiator at COP-28.

The event, which attracted great interest from the public and was fully booked, was attended by the presidents of the Supreme Courts of several countries.

The president of the Brazilian Supreme Court presented the main difficulties for progress on the climate agenda: the denialism of some sectors of society, the short-term nature of political cycles and the need for global and coordinated solutions.

The minister presented the reasons why courts around the world have ruled on the merits of actions involving climate change, including the right of future generations to live in a sustainable environment. Barroso also listed some recent decisions by international courts that have considered the adequate protection of the environment to be a fundamental and constitutional right.

Brazil Pavilion

In the second event of the official program, in the afternoon, the minister spoke about the protection of the Amazon at the Brazil Pavilion, alongside Sonia Guajajara, Minister for Indigenous Peoples.

Barroso spoke about the role of the Judiciary in defending the Amazon, including compliance with public policies for sustainable development in the region.

"Climate change - and consequently global warming, environmental risk - has been identified as the most important environmental problem of the 21st century and one of the defining issues of our time. Numerous authors have referred to it as 'the tragedy of the commons', meaning a situation in which individuals in general, acting only in their own self-interest, behave, in the use of scarce resources, in a manner contrary to the common good," said Barroso at the summit on the Amazon.

The president of the STF mentioned actions judged by the STF on the Amazon region, in favor of the fulfillment of fundamental rights and the Brazilian Constitution. "The great challenge for public law in this area is the need for transnational solutions, involving the cooperation of all countries. This is because the factors that affect the Earth's environment and climate, such as greenhouse gas emissions and deforestation, have consequences that do not respect borders," added the president of the STF.

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