DECLARATION ON CLIMATE JUSTICE

The Declaration on Climate Justice calls for a global response to the climate crisis that prioritizes the rights and voices of the most vulnerable. It advocates for a transition to a low-carbon economy by leaving fossil fuel reserves in the ground, reforming investment models to ensure intergenerational equity, and providing free access to sustainable technologies. The document emphasizes that developed nations must lead in emissions reductions and climate finance, urging world leaders to establish a legally binding climate agreement by 2015 through the United Nations.

• The authors advocate for a vision of climate justice that prioritizes human rights and development, acknowledging that the poorest and most vulnerable populations bear a disproportionate burden of climate change impacts. This vision is driven by the urgency of a climate crisis where science indicates a potential global temperature increase of 4°C by the end of the century.
• To achieve climate justice, the document outlines several priority pathways: ensuring communities are central to decision-making at all levels; transitioning to a low-carbon economic system that leaves the majority of fossil fuel reserves in the ground; and implementing a new investment model that avoids high-carbon assets to ensure intergenerational equity.
• A just transition requires specific social and technological supports, including investments in social protection, the enhancement of worker skills for redeployment in low-carbon economies, and free global access to breakthrough technologies such as new chemical energy storage schemes and efficient organic solar panels.
• The declaration emphasizes the need for accountability and leadership, stating that developed countries must lead in reducing emissions and providing climate finance. It calls for the United Nations and world leaders to treat climate change as an issue of human security and justice to secure a legally binding climate agreement by the end of 2015.
• The document warns that without adequate climate action, there will be an increase in litigation from countries, companies, and communities. It argues that national and international legal systems must evolve to ensure transparency and the effective enforcement of climate policies.

APA

World Resources Institute (2013). DECLARATION ON CLIMATE JUSTICE. https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/declaration_on_climate_justice_0_0.pdf

Chicago

World Resources Institute. DECLARATION ON CLIMATE JUSTICE. 2013. https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/declaration_on_climate_justice_0_0.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=World Resources Institute |title=DECLARATION ON CLIMATE JUSTICE |date=18 September 2013 |url=https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/declaration_on_climate_justice_0_0.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{worldresourcesinstitute2013declaration, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{DECLARATION ON CLIMATE JUSTICE}}, publisher = {World Resources Institute}, year = {2013}, month = sep, url = {https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/declaration_on_climate_justice_0_0.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }