World’s first Global Citizens’ Assembly calls for ecocide to be enforced

The Global Citizens’ Assembly has voted that the crime of Ecocide should be enshrined in international and national laws, and that it should be firmly enforced. The Global Assembly’s declaration, which is being presented to world leaders at the COP26 Climate Conference, says Ecocide should be “firmly enforced alongside existing environmental protection laws.”

The assembly defines Ecocide as: “Unlawful or wanton acts committed with knowledge that there is a substantial likelihood of severe and either widespread or long-term damage to the environment being caused by those acts.” It could possibly make some governments, corporations and individuals guilty of an international crime.

The Global Assembly is supported by UN Secretary General António Guterres and COP26 President Alok Sharma MP. It is a new piece of infrastructure, which ensures everyday people have a seat at the global governance table. The Global Assembly consists of a Core Assembly and Community Assemblies. The Core Assembly is 100 citizens who are an accurate snapshot of the world's population by gender, age, geography, education and attitude to climate change, selected by a global lottery based on Nasa population data, meaning that anyone on earth could be chosen. Anyone in the world, can participate through running or attending a Community Assembly. All participants are supported by world class experts to understand the climate and ecological crisis.

The Global Assembly resolved to endorse the Paris agreement, which aims to limit global heating to 1.5 degrees. The assembly resolved that: “The [Paris] Agreement has to be strictly enforced and monitored by the United Nations, in collaboration with the relevant actors at all levels of governance.”

But the assembly says mitigation should be equitable. “Developed countries should assist developing countries in building up autonomous capabilities for climate action, particularly in financial and technological terms,” the declaration says.

The Global Assembly’s full declaration for action was released at an event in the COP26 Green Zone Imax Theatre at 1300 UTC on 1 November, 2021.