Date: 9 June 2025, 16:00-16:45 CET
Location: Green Zone, La Baleine (Salle ORCA) UN Ocean Conference, Nice, France
The ocean is under unprecedented threat. Climate change, biodiversity loss, pollution, and unsustainable exploitation are pushing marine ecosystems beyond their limits. As the world moves to deliver on SDG 14 and related global commitments, innovative legal tools and frameworks are emerging to strengthen ocean protection and recognise the intrinsic value of marine ecosystems.
Recent legal breakthroughs, including the climate advisory opinions at the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR), and the International Court of Justice (ICJ), alongside the adoption of the BBNJ Agreement and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework or discussions at the International Criminal Court (ICC) to consider the inclusion of ecocide as a fifth core international crime, signal a shift toward more holistic, rights-based approaches to ocean governance.
This side event will explore how these legal instruments and frameworks can be leveraged to advance the recognition of ocean rights, in line with the rights of nature approach. By convening legal experts, youth advocates, and government representatives, the event will foster an inclusive conversation on legal innovation and the transformative potential of recognising the ocean as a rights-bearing entity.
Speakers:
Clara Tomé, Global Alliance for the Rights of Nature – Europe
Environmental legal expert, EU Climate pact ambassador and UN Climate verified agent. Co-lead at GARN Youth, activist, educator and environmental justice advocate.
Lea Weimann, Youth 4 Ecocide Law
Léa Weimann is a PhD researcher in the Faculty of Law at the University of Cambridge, specialising in international environmental and climate change law. Her research focuses on emerging eco-centric legal frameworks, including rights of nature and ecocide law. In Cambridge, she is the Executive Director of the Cambridge Pro Bono Project, coordinating and contributing to high impact legal initiatives. Internationally, she is a member of the IUCN WCEL and is particularly involved in the Climate Change Law Specialist Group. She is also co-lead of the Youth for Ecocide Law branch of Stop Ecocide International. As a UN delegate, Léa has represented youth voices and legal solutions for change at major climate conferences including Stockholm+50, COP27, COP28 and the UNFCCC SB58 conference.
Ying Jie Han, World’s Youth for Climate Justice
Han Ying Jie is a law graduate from the National University of Singapore, Faculty of Law, and an incoming LLM student at the University of British Columbia. Her research interests lie in environmental law, ecojurisprudence, and the Rights of Nature. She previously served as President of NUS Law’s Environmental Law Students Association and is an active campaigner with the World’s Youth for Climate Justice (WYCJ), where she now co-leads the Proposal Writing Team for the Asian Front.
Rocky Guzman, Asian Research Institute for Environmental Law
Rocky is the Deputy Director of the Asian Research Institute for Environmental Law. He is an environmental lawyer and policy specialist with extensive background on oceans and environmental rights. Rocky has worked and conducted research on topics from marine conservation and strengthening the rule of environmental law, to fisheries management and plastic pollution. He was previously the policy campaigner of Oceana in the Philippines, and has been involved in different environmental issues with the Asian Development Bank, UN Environment Programme and the Sustainable Ocean Alliance.
CIEL, Upasana Khatri, Senior Attorney, Climate and Energy Program
Upasana is a Senior Attorney with the Climate and Energy Program at the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL). Upasana's work with CIEL focuses on protecting human rights in the context of the climate crisis by developing and supporting legal and advocacy strategies related to climate litigation and accountability and accelerating the transition away from fossil fuels. Before joining CIEL, Upasana was a Staff Attorney at the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights. In that role, she advocated for the safety and wellbeing of unaccompanied and separated immigrant children held in government custody while helping them navigate the complex world of the U.S. immigration system. Prior to that, Upasana worked for several years at EarthRights International, where she helped implement litigation, advocacy, and policy tools and strategies to support rural and Indigenous communities in advancing their rights and seeking redress for environmental harms and human rights abuses perpetrated by multinational companies. She joined the George Washington University Law School's adjunct faculty in Fall 2024 and teaches a course on human rights and the environment.