United Nations Civil Society Forum: ‘recognise ecocide as an international crime’

Summary:

• The Joint Global Statement of Major Groups and Stakeholders (Joint Global Statement), presented at the Sixth United Nations Environmental Assembly (UNEA-6) held from February 26 to March 1 2024, at United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya, stated that working 'towards the universal recognition of ecocide as an international crime' would serve as a 'powerful deterrent' against the most severe environmental harms.

• The 20th Global Major Groups and Stakeholders Forum (GMGSF 20), which produced the Joint Global Statement, took place in the days immediately prior to UNEA-6. GMGSF 20 marked the culmination of a global consultation process, conducted both online and in-person, which engaged civil society stakeholders including NGOs, trade unions, women's groups, indigenous peoples, members of the scientific community, and representatives of global youth movements. 

• The Joint Global Statement contributed to a high-level Multistakeholder Dialogue at UNEA-6, which was overseen by H.E. Leila Benali, President of UNEA-6, and Ms. Inger Andersen, Executive Director of UNEP.

• This is the second time that the Global Major Groups & Stakeholders Forum has produced a Joint Statement calling for the addition of a new standalone crime of ecocide to the International Criminal Court’s Rome Statute.

You can find the full-length Joint Global Statement of Major Groups and Stakeholders here.