By Nina Bries Silva, PhD, Post-Doctoral Researcher, CLAIM project
After intense debates and negotiations, the UN General Assembly adopted a landmark resolution last Wednesday, May 20, 2026, welcoming the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on the obligations of states regarding climate change, and reaffirming that addressing the climate crisis is a legal duty under international law.
This pioneering effort was led by Vanuatu, the Small Island State that initially brought the climate change case before the ICJ at the request of a group of Pacific students. The CLAIM project precisely analyzes the interconnectedness of these various climate change litigation fora from an interdisciplinary and comparative perspective.
In February 2026, Vanuatu submitted a zero draft resolution and formed a regionally diverse Core Group, comprising Barbados, Burkina Faso, Colombia, Jamaica, Kenya, the Marshall Islands, Micronesia, the Netherlands, Palau, the Philippines, Singapore, and Sierra Leone. While the ICJ’s advisory opinion marked a significant milestone in climate litigation, it did not have the diplomatic impact hoped for at last year’s COP30 in Belém. As Vanuatu’s Minister of Climate Change, Ralph Regenvanu, stated, “Upholding the court’s clarification of existing obligations is essential for the credibility of the international system and for effective collective action.” He added that adopting the UNGA resolution would serve as “a collective act of multilateral confidence that law can help steer us through the climate crisis.” The CLAIM project aims to explore and enhance marginalized actors’ perspectives and litigation practices, like those of Small Island Developing States (SIDS).
On May 20, 2026, the UN General Assembly finally adopted the resolution titled “Protection of the global climate for present and future generations of humankind,” with 141 votes in favor, 8 against, and 28 abstentions. The resolution operationalized the ICJ’s Climate Advisory Opinion, translating its key holdings into actionable language. The CLAIM project will now monitor subsequent developments, the new opportunities it creates within legal spheres but also its impact on the multilateral system.
For a more in-depth analysis of the resolution, we invite you to read the blog post “From Opinion to Action: The General Assembly Votes to Operationalize the ICJ’s Climate Advisory Opinion” by Margaretha Wewerinke-Singh : https://www.ejiltalk.org/from-opinion-to-action-the-general-assembly-votes-to-operationalize-the-icjs-climate-advisory-opinion/
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