Nicole Citeroni
Postdoc
International Criminal Law as a Catalyst for Environmental Peacebuilding
Author
Summary, in English
This paper examines the intersection of peace, justice and sustainability by exploring the
potential of international criminal law to contribute to environmental peacebuilding goals,
which include sustainable governance of natural resources and cooperation to establish
lasting peaceful relations within and between States. Despite the merits of existing stud-
ies in shedding light on the concept of environmental peacebuilding and investigating its
relationship with international law, little attention has been paid by international legal
scholarship to the nexus between international criminal law and environmental peace-
building. Therefore, this paper aims to fill a scholarly gap by providing some reflections on
the harmful interconnection between armed conflict and the environment, arguing that the
norms and institutions of international criminal law can contribute to the achievement of
environmental peacebuilding goals at every stage of the conflict cycle: before, during and
after a conflict. After introducing the concept of environmental peacebuilding and high-
lighting its connections with international criminal law, the paper examines how the latter
can promote environmental peacebuilding goals in the pre-conflict phase by preventing the
misuse of natural resources; during conflicts by preventing and reducing damage to the
environment; and in the post-conflict phase by promoting reparation and reconciliation as
prerequisites for lasting peace and justice. The last section discusses the main findings of
the paper, which uphold the hypothesis that international criminal law can act as a catalyst
for environmental peacebuilding processes.
potential of international criminal law to contribute to environmental peacebuilding goals,
which include sustainable governance of natural resources and cooperation to establish
lasting peaceful relations within and between States. Despite the merits of existing stud-
ies in shedding light on the concept of environmental peacebuilding and investigating its
relationship with international law, little attention has been paid by international legal
scholarship to the nexus between international criminal law and environmental peace-
building. Therefore, this paper aims to fill a scholarly gap by providing some reflections on
the harmful interconnection between armed conflict and the environment, arguing that the
norms and institutions of international criminal law can contribute to the achievement of
environmental peacebuilding goals at every stage of the conflict cycle: before, during and
after a conflict. After introducing the concept of environmental peacebuilding and high-
lighting its connections with international criminal law, the paper examines how the latter
can promote environmental peacebuilding goals in the pre-conflict phase by preventing the
misuse of natural resources; during conflicts by preventing and reducing damage to the
environment; and in the post-conflict phase by promoting reparation and reconciliation as
prerequisites for lasting peace and justice. The last section discusses the main findings of
the paper, which uphold the hypothesis that international criminal law can act as a catalyst
for environmental peacebuilding processes.
Department/s
- Department of Law
Publishing year
2024-12-20
Language
English
Pages
244-260
Publication/Series
Cambridge International Law Journal
Volume
13
Issue
2
Document type
Journal article
Publisher
Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd.
Topic
- Law
Keywords
- Environmental peacebuilding
- International criminal law
- Natural resources
- Armed conflicts
- Sustainable Peace
- Internationell straffrätt
Status
Published
ISBN/ISSN/Other
- ISSN: 2398-9173