Wei Kumaishi-Xiong

Global Pact for the Environment

The Global Pact for the Environment is a proposed international treaty under negotiation at the United Nations. It seeks to recognize the rights and duties of citizens, businesses, and governments towards the Planet. The Global Pact for the Environment project was launched in 2017 by a network of experts known as the "International Group of Experts for the Pact" (IGEP). The group is made up of more than a hundred legal experts in environmental law and is chaired by former COP21 President Laurent Fabius. On 10 May 2018, the United Nations General Assembly adopted, by 142 votes in favor, 5 votes against (United States, Russia, Syria, Turkey, and the Philippines) and 7 abstentions (Saudi Arabia, Belarus, Iran, Malaysia, Nicaragua, Nigeria, and Tajikistan), a resolution paving the way for the negotiation of a Global Pact for the Environment (Resolution A/72/L.51 of 10 May 2018, "Towards a Global Pact for the Environment"). Negotiations are still ongoing. On 8 May 2020, the United Nations Environment Programme nominated two co-facilitators to lead the process. Their mandate is to lead informal consultations to prepare a first draft of a "political declaration" that is to be debated at the UN Environmental Assembly's fifth session in February 2021. This text is scheduled for adoption at the next Earth Summit in 2022.