International Court Rules That “Clean, Healthy and Sustainable Environment” is a Human Right

In a groundbreaking legal ruling that may reshape global climate policy and litigation for decades to come, the United Nations’ top court has declared that countries failing to take adequate action to prevent climate change could be violating international law.

The International Court of Justice (ICJ), delivering its largest-ever climate case ruling in The Hague, affirmed that nations have a legal duty to protect the climate system and may, in some instances, owe reparations for damages caused by climate change. The case, described as historic, involved 96 countries, over 10,000 pages of documentation, 15 judges, and two weeks of hearings in December 2024.

“Failure of a state to take appropriate action to protect the climate system… may constitute an internationally wrongful act,” stated Judge Yuji Iwasawa, president of the ICJ.

In a key statement that is expected to reverberate through legal and political frameworks worldwide, the court also declared that access to a “clean, healthy and sustainable environment” is a human right. This ruling paves the way for more robust international litigation, including the potential for vulnerable nations to hold wealthier, more polluting countries accountable.

A Tremendous Victory for Vulnerable Nations

The ruling has been hailed as a “tremendous victory” by environmental campaigners and by small island nations such as Vanuatu and Tuvalu, whose very existence is threatened by rising sea levels. These countries, which contribute the least to global emissions, are already bearing the brunt of climate-fuelled extreme weather and destruction, all while shouldering the financial burden.

This ruling follows years of frustration among Global South countries over the lack of effective climate reparations or responsibility taken by wealthier, high-emitting nations like the UK, Australia, and Canada. These nations had argued that their obligations were limited to the Paris Agreement—a position now effectively challenged by the ICJ’s ruling.

Joana Setzer, a climate litigation expert at the London School of Economics, described the ruling as unprecedented: “For the first time, the world’s highest court has made clear that states have a legal duty not only to prevent climate harm, but to fully repair it.”

Though the 140-page advisory opinion is non-binding, its symbolic and legal weight could influence a new wave of court cases and international pressure. It sets a vital precedent at a time when voluntary treaties and emission pledges continue to fall short of the action needed to avoid catastrophic warming.

A Student-Led Campaign Turned Global Movement

Remarkably, this historic case was born out of the determination of 27 law students in Vanuatu, who began the campaign in 2019. Their vision eventually led to the UN General Assembly formally requesting an advisory opinion from the ICJ in 2023, backed by 132 countries.

Cynthia Houniuhi from the Solomon Islands, one of the students who led the initiative, said: “This is the start of a new chapter… In five or ten years, small islands like ours will cease to exist. I do not accept that.”

20 Profound and Unprecedented Examples of Climate Change Impact

To fully grasp the stakes of this landmark ruling, here are 20 of the most profound and historically unprecedented climate change incidents, illustrating how the crisis is pushing Earth beyond known boundaries:

1. Thwaites “Doomsday” Glacier Destabilisation (Antarctica)
   A potential tipping point for global sea levels, this massive glacier is melting and becoming unstable, risking up to three metres of sea level rise.
2. Record Ocean Temperatures (2023–2025)
   The highest global sea surface temperatures ever recorded are threatening marine ecosystems, intensifying storms, and accelerating ice melt.
3. Deadly Wet-Bulb Temperatures in South Asia & the Middle East
   Humidity and heat combinations are exceeding survivability limits in parts of India, Pakistan, and Iran—a scenario never observed before.
4. Arctic Permafrost Thaw and Methane Explosions
   Ancient frozen ground is releasing methane at alarming rates, including mysterious craters in Siberia formed by underground gas bursts.
5. Alpine Glacier Collapse (Europe)
   Glaciers in the Alps are melting faster than ever recorded, with entire ice bodies expected to disappear within 20 years.
6. Great Barrier Reef Bleaching Events
   Five mass coral bleaching events since 2016 have devastated the reef, caused by repeated marine heatwaves.
7. Arctic and Boreal Wildfires
   Fires are now occurring above the Arctic Circle, previously considered too cold and wet to burn—transforming tundra into carbon sources.
8. Lake Powell & Lake Mead Collapse (USA)
   The two largest reservoirs in the western U.S. have reached historic lows, jeopardising water for millions due to climate-driven megadroughts.
9. Atlantic Ocean Circulation Weakening (AMOC)
   A vital ocean current that stabilises global weather is slowing significantly, threatening rainfall patterns, European climate, and sea levels.
10. Amazon Rainforest Dieback Risk
    Sections of the Amazon are shifting from rainforest to savannah, risking a carbon sink collapse that could accelerate warming.
11. East African Drought (2020–2023)
    The worst drought in four decades has left over 20 million people facing hunger, with failed rains across five consecutive seasons.
12. Mediterranean “Medicanes” (Mediterranean Hurricanes)
    Powerful, hurricane-like storms are forming in the warming Mediterranean Sea—phenomena not documented in centuries of weather records.
13. Greenland Ice Sheet Runoff Surges
    A single heatwave in 2019 caused Greenland to lose 12.5 billion tonnes of ice in one day, the highest daily melt in history.
14. Canadian Wildfires (2023)
    The largest wildfire season in Canadian history released double the country’s annual emissions, with smoke choking cities thousands of kilometres away.
15. Heat Domes Over North America (2021, 2023)
    Record-breaking temperatures in Canada and the Pacific Northwest resulted in hundreds of deaths, with one town, Lytton, completely burned the day after hitting 49.6°C.
16. South American Glacier Disappearance
    Iconic glaciers in the Andes are vanishing, threatening water supplies for cities and communities across Chile, Peru, and Bolivia.
17. Sudden Stratospheric Warming and Polar Vortex Disruption
    Climate-driven changes to the polar jet stream have created brutal cold snaps in normally temperate regions—a new atmospheric phenomenon.
18. Coral Collapse in the Indian Ocean
    Vast coral systems in the Maldives, Seychelles, and Kenya are bleaching at rates never recorded, affecting fisheries and tourism.
19. Historic Flooding in Libya (2023)
    Mediterranean storm Daniel dropped a year’s worth of rain in a single day, breaking dams and killing over 11,000 people—one of Africa’s deadliest climate events.
20. Record Carbon Dioxide Concentrations (2024)
    CO₂ levels have surpassed 425 ppm for the first time in human history—well above safe planetary boundaries, with no sign of decline.

Conclusion

The ICJ’s advisory opinion may mark the beginning of a new era of climate accountability, one in which inaction is no longer legally or morally acceptable. As the planet moves into uncharted territory, this ruling gives vulnerable nations and campaigners a powerful tool to hold major polluters to account and demand reparations.

With the climate crisis accelerating and the world’s environmental thresholds being crossed, the verdict serves as both a wake-up call and a legal milestone, one that may finally push the international community toward fair, effective, and urgent action.