The triumph at the ICJ is the culmination of a unique university project started by a group of law students at the University of the South Pacific’s law school in Vanuatu in 2019. Their lecturer set up an extracurricular activity, for which 27 students volunteered, to discuss the most productive legal actions Pacific Island countries could take under international law and design a plan of action for their governments.
The students embarked on a campaign, eventually forming the Pacific Islands Students Fighting Climate Change, determined to hold polluting nations accountable so they and their children would have a home to live in. They wanted to test whether international law could save them from the impacts of climate change.
Thanks to this campaign, in March 2023, the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution supported by over 130 countries requesting that the ICJ give an advisory opinion that clarifies the obligations of countries under international law in respect of climate change. The ICJ has handed down a ruling that vindicates the efforts of young activists from the Pacific region and around the world.
Sera Sefeti, a University of the South Pacific journalism graduate who reported on the issue for Pasifika TV from The Hague, said climate change is “a violation of our rights, our cultures and our very existence”. She added that the ruling exceeded the expectations of many Pacific youth.
