The International Rights of Nature Tribunal, a project of the Global Alliance for the Right of Nature (GARN), has called for an end to ecocide and the global phase-out of fossil fuels, warning that the planet’s ecological collapse can no longer be ignored.
The group made the call on Wednesday during a side event to mark the tribunal’s 6th International sitting at the ongoing 30th edition of the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30) in Belem, Brazil.
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According to a statement issued at the end of the convening, the group released a new declaration titled “A New Pledge for Mother Nature.”
In the declaration, the tribunal urged governments and citizens to recognise that nature possesses inherent rights — just as humans do — and that ecosystems must be allowed to exist, thrive, and regenerate (bounce back).
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It decried the alarming rate of species loss and demanded that countries enact laws to protect rivers, forests, and oceans, while criminalising actions that destroy them.
The tribunal also called for recognition and support for indigenous peoples, describing them as “the best caretakers of the land.”
“We are all part of the Earth, an indivisible and living community of interrelated and interdependent beings with a common destiny but with different existential conditions and rights,” the declaration stated.
“The multiple crises we are experiencing are rooted in the economic, political, legal and social systems established by the industrial and growth-oriented cultures that dominate the world today, including capitalism, along with patriarchy, sexism, racism, and anthropocentrism.”
COP 30
This week, delegates, negotiators, scientists, and civil society groups across over 180 countries convened in Belém, Brazil, to discuss priority actions to tackle climate change. The talks, billed for 10-21 November, will focus on the efforts needed to limit the global temperature increase to 1.5°C, the presentation of new national action plans (NDCs) and the progress on the finance pledges made at last COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, last year.
“This COP must ignite a decade of acceleration and delivery,” the UN Secretary-General, Anthony Guterres, told world leaders at the opening of the Belém Climate Summit of the UN climate conference on 6 November.
He said the United Nations will not give up on the goal to keep global temperature below 1.5°C.
“The 1.5°C limit is a red line for humanity. It must be kept within reach,” he said, noting that Countries need to urgently act and scale up solutions that transform economies and protect people, igniting a decade of acceleration and delivery.
He warned that the adaptation funding gap leaves the world’s most vulnerable exposed to rising seas, deadly storms, and searing heat. He called on leaders at COP30 in Brazil to ensure developing countries have the resources and capacity to adapt to climate change.
Nigeria’s agenda for COP30
Before COP30, President Bola Tinubu authorised the adoption of a national carbon market framework, the operationalisation of the climate change fund, and the reinstatement of the National Council on Climate Change (NCCC) in Nigeria’s annual budget.
The approval followed a presentation by the director general of the NCCC, Omotenioye Majekodunmi, during the second meeting of the council held in Abuja.
At the meeting, President Tinubu, represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima, said the approvals were part of measures to properly position Nigeria to exploit opportunities in global climate finance and the carbon market.
“Our focus at COP30 will be to harness all opportunities for financing climate-resilient projects and related interventions, particularly from the global carbon market,” Mr Shettima was quoted as saying.
He added that tackling climate change represents not only an environmental necessity but also “an opportunity to unlock new investments, jobs, and innovations” across energy, agriculture, and industry.
Mr Tinubu reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to mainstreaming climate action into national development, pledging to lead policies that protect citizens, boost the economy, and make Nigeria a haven for green investment.
Ms Majekodunmi disclosed that Nigeria is now ripe to tap new rounds of multilateral climate finance and highlighted three major recommendations: the adoption of a national carbon market framework to unlock up to $3 billion annually, operationalisation of the climate change fund for immediate mobilisation and utilisation, and the restoration of the NCCC budget line within the annual FAAC allocation to ensure financial stability.
The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the economy, Wale Edun, endorsed the recommendations, assuring the council of his ministry’s full support.
“Core demands”
On Wednesday, the Tribunal said Brazil’s hosting of COP30 symbolised the importance of the Amazon, warning against the continued expansion of extractivism, deforestation, and large-scale mining.
The group urged that the Amazon — with its rich biodiversity, ecosystems, and Indigenous communities — be recognised as a “subject of rights.”
Delivering the verdict, the tribunal co-president and Nigerian environmentalist, Nnimmo Bassey, said the defence of nature’s rights is central to achieving real climate justice.
“There is no climate justice without the rights of Nature,” Mr Bassey said.
READ ALSO: Will COP30 deliver for Africa’s climate vulnerability?
The tribunal further pressed for a rapid transition to renewable energy systems that protect both communities and ecosystems, rejecting what it termed “false solutions” that serve only financial speculators.
It also urged the United Nations to adopt A New Pledge for Mother Nature as a framework for future international environmental law.
Judges who sat on the Tribunal include Ana Alfinito (Brazil), Nnimmo Bassey (Nigeria), Enrique Viale (Argentina), Shannon Biggs (USA), Casey Camp Horinek (Ponca Nation, USA), Tom Goldtooth (USA), Princess Esmeralda (Belgium), Cormac Cullinan (South Africa), Patricia Gualinga (Ecuador), Francesco Martone (Italy), Tzeporah Berman (USA), Ashish Katharine (India), Osprey Orielle Lake (USA), Pooven Moodley (South Africa) and Felicio Pontes (Brazil).
