Introduction
Climate change was originally referred to as global warming due to the lack of understanding of the effects of human activity on the climate, but it was understood that human activities were warming the planet. It is understood that global warming is a part of climate change and not the only issue arising from a change in the world’s climate, therefore, it could be argued that the term ‘climate change’ is wary of future impacts as the future of climate change is not fully certain. However, the effects of climate change are being felt across the world and one way in which states are regulating the impacts of climate change is through climate law. Climate change is not solely based on the environmental impacts but on mitigation regulations as people’s daily lifestyles are contributing heavily to the climate crisis. Climate change is therefore not a singular area of science, law, or theory. Climate change is a diverse topic involving many contributors and requiring various solutions to tackle the crisis. This means that climate change and environmental law is an interdisciplinary topic relating to various subject areas. Interdisciplinary is the development of topic areas by making use of other disciplines ideals and knowledge and was developed in the 1930’s when studies were attempted to be mixed through joint teaching and scheduling. This means that other subjects can help build areas of law without being classed as legal disciplines. Therefore, interdisciplinary is allowing multiple disciplines to contribute to the issue of climate change. Defining Climate Change Law (CCL) is difficult as the scope at which we define CCL can be very wide. For example, housing regulations that require adequate home insulation contributes to the mitigation of climate change by ensuring homes are built more energy efficient and there are regulations on the amount of emissions a car can release to reduce the environmental effects of running a car. Therefore, CCL and regulations are aimed at protecting the environment from human activity. CCL can be broadly defined as regulating the causes and impacts of climate change and implementing mitigating rules. This means that the CCL involves many disciplines and areas of law as everyday life contributes to climate change. International CCL has sought to regulate global emissions by ensuring that States meet emissions targets through caps, treaties, and principles. International CCL is defined as international legal principles that regulate human activities which contribute to climate change and the responses to climate change issues. The European Commission uses climate law to achieve the aim of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions and this is through regulations and general protection strategies that maintain the environment. Climate law is not a straightforward subject and is the reason why many universities are conducting entire courses dedicated to the subject of climate law.
History of Climate Law
Laws do not develop out of thin air, there generally must be an issue recognised socially and politically for it to eventually develop into law. In 2006 there was much debate by scientists and politicians on the effects and issues regarding the environment and the links to climate change which ultimately led to legal discussions of these issues. The development of climate law has not been easy, and the advancement of climate law has had to overcome many obstacles. Lord Denning illustrated one of the issues environmental laws face through the Town and County Planning Act 1959 which was so confusing he could not ‘’…conceive how any ordinary person can be expected to understand it.’’ This can be reflected in the lack of understanding of climate change issues and the lack of scientific knowledge being invested in the laws governed nationally and internationally along with the complexity of legal norms. The UK courts were even reluctant to infiltrate environmental law scholarship for aiding knowledge, which means that climate law could only advance so far with these limitations preventing its improvement. There have been issues with international climate law and the issue of state sovereignty. International rules on climate change usually move slowly due to the multiple moving parts necessary for a law to be put in place or bind a state, and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was branded as an unrealistic goal for states to be united to achieve the goals presented. The UNFCCC was adopted by the UN Conference on Environment and Development in Rio in 1992 after public and political pressure was sparked from scientific data of climate change and environmental challenges. Therefore, the UNFCCC goal was to reduce greenhouse gases which contribute to climate change to ensure sustainable development for the future. The Kyoto Protocol demonstrates the necessity of ensuring that all contributing states are involved and on the same page to achieve success, in this case, the US was not on board with the protocol and since they are one of the largest contributors to global emissions it negatively affected and undermined the goals of the protocol. The European Commission aims to have a proposal for a European Climate Law which will reach climate neutral in 2050 for Europe through green technologies and reducing emissions. This means that all EU laws and policies will somehow contribute to this goal extending the aim of net-zero emissions to all parts of society in the EU.
Climate Law Principles
The law is generally formed as a response to an issue or to regulate and maintain order, therefore, CCL is to regulate our responses to climate change and reduce its effects. The law is developing as the world adapts to new knowledge and understandings of things that were not comprehendible when laws were originally being drafted worldwide. The main question is whether the law is an interdisciplinary subject in itself, as law students must tackle every area of law briefly to qualify and then take on further practical knowledge to then practice as a lawyer. Hence there is a valid argument that the law has always been interdisciplinary from its formation. For example, it is not just climate law that is necessarily interdisciplinary, medical law links to many issues such as ethics and morals of the implications of the law. As the world gets smaller and globalisation takes hold a lawyer’s general knowledge must represent this, whether that is a legal scholar, practitioner, or researcher. There are many aspects to law and the development of climate law, an important aspect is legal scholarship. The research into environmental issues and the links and solutions connected to current laws are infiltrated by ideals from other disciplines. Therefore, climate law necessitates at least a basic understanding of other areas of law, for example, environmental liability and climate change causation links to elements of tort law as an example. Climate change litigation is when a party requires a court or tribunal decision based on an issue on climate policy relating to the causes and effects due to climate change. The issue with climate change litigation is that the law or policy may not relate specifically to the environmental problems or be the main reasoning behind the courts decision. Many environmentally driven cases are sought through other areas of law and decided on facts disregarding the environmental issues, despite whether the outcome is favourable to the environmental factors in the case, causing the law surrounding climate change to be blurred. There are national climate statutes that are used to regulate a states environmental impacts which are climate laws. Different states will have varying degrees of environmental quality maintained through climate statues that contribute to the climate crisis. The idea of common and differentiated responsibilities is demonstrated by all states recognising their responsibility internationally when conducting climate laws and policy but not being equally responsible under the climate legislation. The idea is that developed states have contributed more to the climate crisis and have the ability to act on the issue due to the resources available to them. Developing states are more likely to feel the effects of climate change without being able to act due to their lack of resources as the state is developing economically, therefore, they have less of a responsibility in terms of the law.
Importance of Climate Law being Interdisciplinary
Climate change issues should ultimately be incorporated in every aspect of law as climate change will transform the worlds future development and way of living. Therefore, climate change law and policy can be identified as laws that directly regulate the contributors to climate change such as emission regulations, however, it can also be linked to laws that regulate the composition of a car that is required to release less carbon into the environment. The issue with interdisciplinary subjects is that it lacks depth, as someone cannot be fully equipped in an area that links to several topics. For example, a lawyer may have a deep understanding of the law in practice but not fully understand the scientific effects that the laws may have. Also, a legal scholar who investigates the politics into legal debates and discussions may have a better understanding as to why certain laws are in place in comparison to an environmentalist who petitions for greener actions to be taken. Therefore, not one individual can be an expert in climate change law as it involves too many areas. Arguably law scholars cannot contribute to other disciplines, however, law scholars research can improve laws to be aligned with modern science, theory and views which will enhance the legal field which will eventually benefit society in the future. Interdisciplinary is encouraged as it ensures a collective advancement of disciplines, for example the UK government allowed funding for many interdisciplinary subjects to ensure that the knowledge of national universities are maintaining their high level status in the evolving world. The rise in interdisciplinary subjects can be due to the involvement of movements such as activism and public involvement. It has been argued that scientific knowledge and data alone is not enough to address climate change, it was a necessary knowledge area in identifying climate change and its impacts, but not enough to inspire action. Activities like the Extinction Rebellion have promoted action through public awareness, marketing schemes and political pressure to encourage world leaders and governments to act on climate change. Therefore, the greatest influence on legal advancement for climate change has been down to activist inspiring political pressure along with legal scholars. The public may not have heard of academic accomplished writers, judges, or political leaders, but the public are more likely to know environmental activists like Greta Thunberg and David Attenborough who act on climate issues and make their views accessible to a wider audience. Scholarship is expanding and the more voices that hear the arguments then the greater the effect it may have on the discipline and the world, as it incites more people and initiates a wider discussion. David Attenborough is a famous example of an expert in his field sharing knowledge to the public for the greater good of environmental and climate issues that the world faces today, and activism like this could be the instigator for significant change, as the law adapts along with public perception and favours the majority.
Disciplines that Contribute to Climate Law
Climate Law was developed from the issue of climate change and involves many social, economic, and environmental factors. As discussed climate law is an interdisciplinary subject and has been adapted through various disciplines contributing to this area of law. Economic theory can heavily impact the actions taken by laws and the development into new areas of legal discussion. The impact of climate change is not just limited to environmental damage but damages to business, homes and infrastructure which means that this will cost a lot of money as demonstrated by the Stern Review claiming that ignoring climate change will harm the economic growth of the world. Economic research has contributed further to the development of climate law in understanding the restriction necessary for environmental improvement. Economic and market approaches to climate law can input the need for carbon prices and emissions caps, as economics and the law in terms of climate and the environment are becoming more interlinked as the issues advance. For example, the UNFCCC and EU all use market mechanisms for climate policy illustrating that legal and economic principles are interlinked on certain issues, and the change of one will eventually affect the other. The Environmental Kuznets Curve identifies the relationship between economic gain and environmental quality as a U-shape, demonstrating that economic gain will lead to environmental improvement encouraging that economic gain is vital when considering climate laws. This leads onto the importance of workers’ rights and ensuring that government invest in greener technologies ensuring that jobs are provided for local people. Greener energy can ensure that states economy grow by providing jobs and substituting harmful industries that contribute to climate change. Therefore, energy law and workers’ rights can overlap into climate law, and the economic and moral principles can aid climate law formation as research shows it will benefit the climate crisis. It is highly likely that the disciplines which aid the development of climate law will continue to grow along with our understanding of the effects of climate change. The future of carbon capture initiatives will surely involve the creation of new laws that will regulate its development and engineers will play a progressive role in tackling the climate crisis through other inventions. The effects of climate change may broaden climate laws even further by forcing people to migrate and consuming entire cities or states to rising sea levels. The law will play an important role in managing the effects of climate change and aim at reducing the impacts further.
Consequences of Climate Law being Interdisciplinary
Climate law has many underlining factors that need to be understood to fully grasp the concept of climate law, for example, there are the physical and scientific impacts of climate change along with the general principles of law. Climate law extends beyond national law and requires a general understanding of international law and the issues of transnational impacts along with the repercussions and mitigation responses by states and legal bodies. The science behind climate change is the reason for the general understanding of humans impacts on the world, however, the scientific evidence has failed to convince the entirety of the world of its importance or even existence. However, without the scientific knowledge and advances made by scientists then there would be no climate law today, the discipline played an integral role in identifying a problem and analysing the possible solutions. The issue is that although interdisciplinary subjects are increasing in popularity, the availability of funding is not always accessible meaning that the subject is unable to advance. To teach a course involving the interdisciplinary approach such as climate law will require experts in different fields and various resoruces that are not required for a traditional discipline meaning it requires more money. It also means that a person cannot be a specialist or an expert in climate law as it is such a vast subject, meaning that it requires multiple experts or someone who has a vague knowledge on all the areas involved in climate law but not an in depth knowledge. There is an argument that allowing knowledge from other disciplines to infiltrate law affects the autonomy of law. This means that outside knowledge can affect the validity and ideals of law by altering it with other disciplines. For example, it is counterintuitive to look at principles outside the law as lawyers must follow the law as it is set out or was intended to be perceived by Parliament instead of being distracted by other disciplines. This argument also extends to the validity of the work produced when contributed by various disciplines, as scientists and lawyers have different approaches and learning styles it will be difficult to draw from their research and have a mutual conclusion that will aid the development of the subject area. For example, it could create a divide between legal scholars who participate in an interdisciplinary approach to the law compared to a practicing lawyer. This would lead to an unrealistic viewpoint from scholars and practitioners which would not contribute to the development of the legal area and again raise the issue of the importance of the autonomy of law. Law as a discipline holds a high level of esteem attached to law degrees and law professions as the training and knowledge requires a certain level of academia and thinking. The issue with the interdisciplinary approach is that it may weaken the standing of a law degree in the professional world and academically rendering a law degree less significant than when it was contained within its own discipline. The law requires an extensive understanding of complex principles, processes, and statutes, which means it may be difficult explaining and incorporating other disciplines approaches as the law is very structured. The law also has a long-standing history and precedent, therefore, incorporating other disciplines may only weaken something that was working fine for centuries.
Conclusion
In conclusion, climate law is necessarily interdisciplinary as it requires the input from other disciplines. Climate and environmental law would not exist without scientific input which means that it requires further input for the future, therefore, the disciplines are dependent on one another. It was demonstrated by Ole W. Pedersen that climate law can be visualised as a vast ocean of general scholarship which is contributed by streams of different disciplines, and this is a great way to visualise the idea of interdisciplinarity of climate law. There are disadvantages to an interdisciplinary approach, however, the benefits of climate law being interdisciplinary strongly outweigh the negatives. It is important to highlight the issues with interdisciplinary scholarship and learning as it can lead to a solution to the problem. The difficulty with interdisciplinary research and collaboration is the lack of communication between disciplines and can be corrected by allowing open discussions between disciplines. This is easier said than done but can be achieved through universities allowing scholars, lecturers and students the opportunity to work with other disciplines that link to their subject matter allowing a flow of communication at the initial stages of learning for many students. If we limit the climate issue to one subject, then it would negatively impact the advancement of climate law and its effective enforcement on the general public and mitigating the effects of climate change. The social issues arising from climate change cannot be ignored when enacting climate laws and require integral scientific and economic backing to be effective. This is evident in the covid pandemic which affected the globe and required aid from all sectors to ensure the issue was maintained and essentially saved lives. Climate Change is similar to covid-19 as it is a global issue and requires participation and input from every state and action from all integral sectors in order to mitigate its effects. Therefore, the law is an integral role in combating climate change, however, it is not the only essential discipline that can help solve the issue. Climate law is a unique area as it involves a very wide subject which incorporating the rigid legal principles that are essential in allowing it to be classed as the law. However, it cannot be ignored that other disciplines proved essential knowledge for climate law which will benefit future generations if considered when climate laws are formed. The effectiveness of climate laws is dependent on social and scientific factors to ensure that the laws are tackling the real problem. For example, if there was not science discovering the fact that greenhouse gases cause climate change, then the laws put in place to regulate emissions would not occur. Climate change is a global issue requiring mass input to ensure effective national and international laws. Therefore, climate law would not occur today if it were not for the interdisciplinary approach to legal scholarship.
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