ePrints

Stop Ecocide International’s Blueprint for Ecocide is Compromised by Anthropocentrism: A New Architect Must be Found

Lookup NU author(s): Dr Elliot WinterORCiD

Downloads

• Published version [.pdf]

Licence

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).

Abstract

An expert panel formed by Stop Ecocide International has proposed an amendment to the Rome Statute that, if adopted, would create a new international crime of ecocide. However, the panel’s proposal is compromised throughout by anthropocentrism in the sense that it places too much emphasis on the needs of humans and not enough on the needs of the environment. It is argued here that this anthropocentric dilution of ecocide resulted from the panel’s lack of standing, influence and confidence on the international stage. Its weakness pushed it towards a strategy of producing something palatable to states in the hope of securing their support. That strategy will prove futile. The article considers whether other actors, such as the international courts or experts working in different contexts, might be better placed to design the blueprint for ecocide. It concludes, tentatively, that the International Law Commission remains the architect best positioned to set out a bold vision of ecocide.

Publication metadata

Author(s): Winter E

Publication type: Article

Publication status: Published

Journal: Israel Law Review

Year: 2023

Volume: 57

Issue: 1

Pages: 175-209

Print publication date: 01/03/2024

Online publication date: 20/03/2023

Acceptance date: 20/08/2022

Date deposited: 30/03/2023

ISSN (print): 0021-2237

ISSN (electronic): 2047-9336

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

URL: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0021223722000218

DOI: 10.1017/S0021223722000218

Altmetrics

Share