Volume 22: Issue | Numéro 1 (2026)
Towards a Global Cooperation and Solidarity Framework for Climate (Im)mobility
Samantha Velluti
Drawing on the principle of common concern of humankind (CCH), as first adopted by the 1992 UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), and the concept of equal human dignity, this article proposes a solidarity-based global framework for governing climate (im)mobility. It advances a rights-driven approach that brings together the right to a healthy environment (R2HE) and key UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Rather than creating a new, singular category of “climate migrant,” the article argues for an integrated legal architecture capable of responding to the diverse drivers, needs, aspirations, risks and vulnerabilities that shape climate (im)mobility. It emphasizes international cooperation as essential in delivering justice-oriented solutions for both climate migrants and communities unable to move, particularly in the face of existing governance and protection gaps. The contribution of the proposed framework lies in building on existing international and European legal instruments and developments, bridging distinct fields of law, and combining prescriptive and facilitative obligations rather than establishing a wholly separate regime for climate (im)mobility.
Temitope Tunbi Onifade, Callum Hill, and Alexia Kaplan
At their 27th Conference of the Parties (COP 27) at Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, in 2022, parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) agreed to establish multilateral funding arrangements, including a fund, to address losses and damages arising from climate change in developing countries. They operationalized these arrangements and activated the fund at COP 28 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, in 2023. Guided by a conceptual framework of justice, we ask what these new funding arrangements should aim to achieve. Developed with qualitative and legal methods, the thesis is that the new funding arrangements should deliver compensation in a manner that is inclusive of particularly vulnerable countries and communities. We make two new contributions. First, we construct a conceptual framework for thinking about and guiding action on “loss and damage justice.” Second, for the implementation of this framework, we propose a complementary arrangement with two components: a Loss and Damage Fund Expert Body and dedicated funding for the participation of developing countries in negotiations impacting the L&D Fund. These components indicate how to empower community actors under the L&D agenda.