Using Law and Equity for Poor and the Environment

Abstract

This chapter discusses ways of overcoming “adaptation apartheid,” a term used to describe the differences in reactions to environmental disasters between poor and wealthy people and countries. The chapter focuses on “environmental protection and poverty alleviation.” The first section describes the connections between poverty and environmental damage, and the second section discusses distributive justice, defined as “an ethical imperative based on the notion of moral reciprocity.” Third, the chapter lists the sources of law pertaining to environmental justice, including private law, regulation, market mechanisms, and rights-based approaches. The chapter concludes by noting the advantages and challenges to a rights-based approach and advocates for an approach that addresses both environmental and human rights.

Keywords: human rights, environmental law, rights-based approach, adaptation apartheid, international law

JEL Classification: F00, K32, K33