Environmental Rule of Law‐ Statement

Thank you, Madame Chair, for giving me the floor, and please allow me to also thank Mr. Bakary Kante for all his years of service to DELC. My name is Marcos Orellana with the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL).  I deliver this statement on behalf of the Major Group civil society cluster comprising NGOs, Women, Indigenous Peoples, Farmers, Local Authorities, Children & Youth, and Workers & Trade Unions.   We welcome UNEP's work on environmental rule of law focused on advancing justice, governance and law for environmental sustainability.  This body of work lays the foundation for democratic governance and stronger environmental legal and policy frameworks.  Stronger environmental laws at the local, national and international levels are a sine qua non to addressing the environmental and inequity crisis facing our planet.  At the same time, a rights‐ based approach to environmental protection embeds the environmental rule of law in the transcendental values of justice, equality and non‐discrimination. We wish to underscore developments on tackling transnational environmental crime and on advancing the Montevideo IV program.