World Council of Churches in support of Ecocide Law
A statement from the 11th Assembly of the World Council of Churches in Karlsruhe calls for support for ecocide law as a new and strengthened form of accountability.
To read more, please visit Faith for Ecocide Law
A statement from the 11th Assembly of the World Council of Churches in Karlsruhe calls for support for ecocide law as a new and strengthened form of accountability.
The World Council of Churches is the world’s largest ecumenical organisation and the Assembly is held every eight years. The statement The Living Planet: Seeking a Just and Sustainable Global Community , released Sep 8, conveys a feeling of urgency as it calls for metanoia; a transformative change of heart and mind. It determines that the narrow anthropocentric understanding of our relationship with Creation must be revised to a whole of life understanding.
The Assembly insists on the need for practical action – not just more commitments – to meet the pressing need to avert ecological disaster. One of the demands refers to the Faith for Ecocide law initiative. It reads: “All governments and authorities must respect, protect and fulfil the human right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment, as described in the “Escazú Agreement”. The consideration of such proposals as the creation of a new UN Economic, Social and Ecological Security Council, a Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty, the rights of nature, ecocide laws, a Climate Crimes Tribunal, and an Advisory Opinion on Human Rights and Climate Change from the International Court of Justice, are new and strengthened forms of accountability which need support.”
“When a broad ecumenical organisation underline that we need to revise our relationship to the Creation and also recognize the need of laws to protect ecosystems, there is hope for a transformation to a more sustainable future. And if WCC can reach out to other faith traditions to speak out for an ecocide law, governments around the world must listen“, says Rev. Henrik Grape, coordinator of the World Council of Churches Working Group on Climate Change.
“Faith communities have a unique voice for the reverence of the living world. It is very encouraging and of great importance that this voice is being heard for a law with the power to protect nature at the highest level“, says Pella Thiel, coordinator of Faith for Ecocide law initiative.
The statement further states the need for climate justice, and recognizes the situation for indigenous peoples as among the first to face the direct consequences of climate change. The WCC itself commits to an emergency response by establishing a Commission, declaring an Ecumenical Decade of repentance and action for a just and flourishing planet, and reduce its institutional carbon footprint to net-zero by 2030.
About the World Council of Churches
The World Council of Churches is a fellowship of 352 churches from more than 120 countries, representing over 580 million Christians worldwide. The WCC is the broadest and most inclusive among the many organized expressions of the modern ecumenical movement, a movement whose goal is Christian unity.
The WCC Assembly is the highest governing body of the World Council of Churches, and normally meets every eight years. It is the only time when the entire fellowship of member churches comes together in one place for prayer and celebration.
Walk for Earth UK – Fundraising for Stop Ecocide International
Walk for Earth UK: fundraising for Stop Ecocide International.
Zoe Bicat and her mule Falco set off from their hometown of Oxford on the 8th of June and over the next few months, they will be walking to Loch Lomond in Scotland.
Zoe Bicat and her mule Falco set off from their hometown of Oxford on the 8th of June and over the next few months, they will be walking to Loch Lomond in Scotland.
For Zoe, the walk is a way of honouring the late Polly Higgins, co-founder of Stop Ecocide, as the destination is close to her childhood home.
Along the way the pair are raising funds and spreading awareness about Stop Ecocide International and the global work to make ecocide an international crime, helping it to gain recognition in society, by giving talks in schools and inviting people to get involved in various ways.
Some ideas to support Walk for Earth:
Do your own walk to further raise awareness and funds for Stop Ecocide. Visit the ‘Guide to your Walk for Earth’ and find more creative ideas, like nature connection and audio-visual activities here.
Message your local MP using the template and resources provided here, to encourage the UK government to express support for ecocide law.
Donate to Zoe to cover the costs of her walk, such as equipment and vet checks for Falco.
Spread the word on social media by tagging your MP (see the tips to post) and using the hashtags #WalkforEarthUK and #EcocideLaw
Meet Zoe and Falco along the route to learn more about their adventure and the campaign to criminalise mass damage and destruction to nature. By using the live-updating map, you can track their progress from Oxford to Loch Lomond or use the app Polarsteps.
Are you a weaver, hand-spinner or plant-dyer? You are invited to help create a collaborative textile piece, using natural yarns and plant dyes from locations all along the route of Walk for Earth, that will illustrate a love for nature. The artwork will be presented to the island of Vanuatu in the south-western Pacific Ocean, as a gift to recognise their leadership as the first nation in the world to propose serious consideration of ecocide law on the international stage in December 2019. Find more info online and email info@walkforearth.co.uk if you would like to get involved.
"We hope you will be inspired to tell all your colleagues and friends about Walk for Earth, and maybe even do your own local walk.
We invite you to use your democratic voice: message your MP and tell them to ask the government to support a new international crime of ecocide. Ministers know this law is on the horizon but they are reluctant to engage, so every demand counts!”
Jojo Mehta, CFounder and Executive Director of Stop Ecocide International.
We wish Zoe and Falco all the best on their exciting adventure and we are grateful for them raising awareness and funds to support an international law of ecocide to protect the natural living world.
Ecocide discussed at 20th anniversary of the International Criminal Court
The International Criminal Court (ICC) celebrated 20 years since it opened its doors in July 2002. A one-day conference was held in The Hague to mark the occasion, and the last session of the day, focusing on the future of the court, prominently featured discussion of ecocide as a possible fifth Rome Statute crime.
Today the International Criminal Court (ICC) celebrates 20 years since it opened its doors in July 2002. A one-day conference was held in The Hague to mark the occasion, and the last session of the day, focusing on the future of the court, prominently featured discussion of ecocide as a possible fifth Rome Statute crime.
Professor Phoebe Okowa (Queen Mary’s University, London) specifically addressed the consensus definition of ecocide drafted by the Independent Expert Panel (June 2021) convened by our Foundation, highlighting areas of interest and contention.
Of particular focus were political considerations, inter alia: definition of the term “wanton” and how developing states will view this; justice and accountability for existing destructive acts (a new crime would not be retroactive); and whether corporate responsibility should be considered (the definition accepts only individual responsibility, as a given from the Statute as it stands).
Professor Okowa’s intervention shows how seriously the ICC is taking this strategic legal initiative, and her points are extremely useful aspects to highlight and discuss as the legal definition gains traction around the world, and consideration of a Rome Statute amendment gathers momentum.
As the Former ICC President and now President of the Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute, Silvia Fernandez de Gurmendi*, pointed out today :
“It is a living document and ecocide does deserve very serious discussion. […] It is for states to decide […] if they want to add - or not - additional crimes, and this will require very broad agreements among them.”
The list of states engaging with this strategic legal initiative is growing all the time - just this week, at the UN Ocean Conference in Lisbon, co-host country Kenya announced it will be proposing creation of an offence of ecocide as part of an extensive package of environmental law reforms including protection for environmental defenders.
There are now 23 States Parties to the Rome Statute with discussion of ecocide on public record at parliamentary and/or government level.
*Shown below with our Strategic Projects consultant in the Hague, Shirleen Chin