The convergence of environmental and economic crises poses a threat to human livelihoods and sustainable development progress, and nowhere more so than in highly climate vulnerable countries. In this post, the team delivering the Democratising Education for Global Sustainability and Justice (DemEd Global) programme explain how teaching policymakers in these countries to use legal tools can help them approach closer to the Sustainable Development Goals.
Last month broke an unprecedented number of heat records, a result of the combination of anthropogenic climate change and the El Niño phenomenon. Over the next fifty years, it is estimated that one to three billion people will live in extreme climate conditions, with drastic worldwide impacts on health, food security and migration trajectories. Simultaneously, due to Covid and rising prices of fuel and food due to global conflict, 4.8 billion people are poorer in 2024 than they were in 2019.
The United Kingdom has not escaped this global crisis, with the “poorest half” of British households expected to experience living standards in 2024 that are as much as 20% lower than compared with 2019-2020, and which are not predicted to return to pre-pandemic levels until 2027. Inequity and social injustice present further significant hurdles to global sustainable development. Disparities in access to education, healthcare, clean water, and economic opportunities persist, leaving many communities marginalised and vulnerable. This confluence of global challenges calls for innovative policy design and governance that addresses inequalities and prioritises social inclusion, gender equity, and poverty alleviation.
At the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit in 2015, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was adopted to address these converging crises and to “take the bold and transformative steps which are urgently needed to shift the world onto a sustainable and resilient path.” The 2030 Agenda includes 17 Sustainable Development Goals with 169 associated targets focusing on the critical areas of people, planet, prosperity, peace and partnership.
However, implementation of these goals remains a critical challenge and effective public policy on sustainable development has never been more important, especially for highly climate vulnerable and low-income countries.
To help meet the challenge, a recently launched Democratising Education for Global Sustainability and Justice (DemEd Global) programme, which is co-hosted by Lucy Cavendish College and Hughes Hall and led by Professor Marie-Claire Cordonier Segger, aims to harness the potential of international law and public policy to empower communities and governments across the globe, particularly in highly vulnerable countries. In its first year, this programme has offered free courses on the law and policy dimensions of sustainability to over 2,200 learners in more than 100 countries. The courses, which build on the Bennett Institute’s Wealth Economy programme, train law and policy specialists and gives them the knowledge and skills required to ensure essential climate treaties are implemented.
These courses, provided on a scholarship basis thanks to philanthropic support, prioritise people from highly climate vulnerable and least developed countries (LDCs). In 2024, Sierra Leone is one of the countries to participate. Hon. Mr. Jiwoh Emmanuel Abdulai, Environment and Climate Change Minister of Sierra Leone, stated:
“The Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change is excited about this partnership, which will boost our capacity building efforts for climate negotiations, legislations, and action. The online courses will further help current and future leaders across the country, navigate the complexities of law and policy.”
The Higher Education Minister of Sierra Leone, Hon. Dr. Haha Ramatulai Wurie, also expressed enthusiasm about the scholarships:
“By providing opportunities for current and future law and policy leaders to access high-quality online courses, we are empowering individuals to drive positive change in our country. I am confident that this collaboration will not only enhance the knowledge and skills of the scholarship recipients but also contribute to the sustainable development goals of Sierra Leone.”
The programme’s educational offerings are being expanded. Two new courses are being piloted on the World Trade Organization and on related agreements, and on the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Applications for the Spring session are now open. Current and future law and policy leaders from any sector and any country, anywhere in the world, and especially in the Global South, are now able to register to be considered for selection.
Applications for the next session are now open using the links below. International law can be a powerful tool in the hands of highly vulnerable countries, and teaching policymakers from those countries to use the tool is an example of the DemEd programme and the Bennett Institute’s shared commitment to giving policymakers the knowledge and skills they need to contribute to the public good.
Forthcoming dates
- The Paris Agreement, Sustainable Development and the Law
- Dates: 15 April – 28 April 2024; application deadline 11:59pm GMT 14 March 2024
- The Global Biodiversity Framework, Sustainable Development and the Law
- Dates: 6 May – 19 May 2024; application deadline 11:59pm GMT 14 March 2024
- Trade Rules, Sustainable Development and the Law
- Dates: 27 May – 9 June 2024; application deadline 11:59pm GMT 25 April 2024
- Link to Express Interest: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/wto-agreements-sdgs-and-the-law-course-express-interest-tickets-801740596707
- The Children’s Rights Convention, Sustainable Development and the Law
- Dates: 17 June – 30 June 2024 application deadline 11:59pm GMT 25 April 2024
To find out more, especially if interested in supporting the programme, please write to the Research Coordinator, Tejas Rao: tr465@cam.ac.uk
Image: Side Event titled “Climate Law in Highly Vulnerable Countries” at the Sierra Leone Pavilion on Sunday, 10 December 2023 during COP28. Chaired by Professor Marie-Claire Cordonier Segger, Chair of Sustainable Development Law and Policy at the University of Cambridge, and Mr Gabriel Kpaka, Climate Negotiator of Sierra Leone; featuring keynotes by Hon Jiwoh Emmanuel Abdulai and Mr Saber Hossian Chowdhury, Ministers of Sierra Leone; and including an intervention from Adv Hafij Khan of Bangladesh, member of the Warsaw International Mechanism Executive Committee for LDCs.
The views and opinions expressed in this post are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of the Bennett Institute for Public Policy.
