Decolonial praxis; Indigenous approaches; international environmental law; global environmental governance; biodiversity; Convention on Biological Diversity
Abstract :
[en] Our world is not just uncertain and complex; we are evolving into an age
of chaos, with environmental collapse at its epicentre. By addressing environmental
challenges in isolation rather than within their broader historical
and socio-economic context, international environmental law has failed to
respond effectively. In this contribution, we argue that mainstream research
paradigms based on doctrinal approaches are insufficient. We provide a brief
overview of the inadequacies of global environmental governance as shaped
by a series of multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs), illustrated by
our insights at the 2024 meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP 16)
to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), with emphasis on outcomes
related to Indigenous Peoples and local communities. Building on the legacy
of Third World Approaches to International Law (TWAIL) and Indigenous
approaches, we draw attention to lessons arising from decolonial theory
articulated
primarily
by Latin American scholars. We argue that the persistence
of doctrinal and positivist approaches in legal scholarship has failed to
address the root causes of planetary challenges. We emphasise the importance
of a paradigm shift grounded in decolonial research praxis that prioritises
relationality and transdisciplinarity. Decolonial praxis can help unpack the
historical inequities, power imbalances, and material continuities of colonial
legacies that remain at the heart of global environmental governance, and
challenge the structures and knowledge that underpin the governance architecture.
A new research paradigm would be based on the recognition that
international law is a historically contingent and deeply political field that
has mainly served as a mechanism of domination, albeit paradoxically also
as a site of resistance.
