AOSIS Push for Evolution of International Law to Address Sea Level Rise

The 39 leaders from the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) have issued a declaration affirming that countries will retain their statehood, sovereignty, and UN membership notwithstanding the impacts of climate change-related sea level rise. The Declaration on Sea Level Rise and Statehood builds on 30 years of small island developing States’ (SIDS) efforts to tackle the climate crisis by playing a critical role in the international climate talks and helping international law evolve to address the disproportionate impact climate change has on SIDS.

Issued during the UN General Assembly (UNGA) High-level Meeting (HLM) to Address Existential Threats Posed by Sea Level Rise on 25 September 2024, the Declaration underscores that “in this era of unprecedented and relentless sea-level rise, international law must do more,” calling upon the international community to cooperate in ensuring the durability of statehood in the face of climate change-related sea level rise.

In his remarks to the opening of the HLM, UN Secretary-General António Guterres underscored that “[o]nly drastic action to reduce emissions can limit sea level rise” and keep people safe. He called on all countries to deliver new nationally determined contributions (NDCs) “well ahead of” the 2025 UN Climate Change Conference (UNFCCC COP 30) in Brazil. These climate plans, he said, must align with 1.5ºC, cover all sectors, and “put us on track to phase out fossil fuels, fast and fairly.” Guterres also emphasized the need for developed countries to double their annual adaptation finance to at least USD 40 billion by 2025.

In his address, UNGA President Philémon Yang acknowledged that “even with effective climate action, … entire islands are at risk of being lost, entire coastlines are being eroded and are vanishing,” making sea level rise “an issue we cannot morally, politically, or financially, afford to ignore.”

During the day-long meeting, nearly 100 speakers took the floor, outlining SIDS’ and low-lying countries’ challenges such as lack of financing for mitigation and adaptation measures. Participants also heard accounts of technical and monetary support for vulnerable States.

Initiatives and proposals highlighted during the meeting include:

Global efforts to adopt a negotiated UNGA declaration on sea level rise in 2026;
Use of innovative approaches and artificial intelligence (AI) for monitoring and risk analysis, and cooperation between scientists; and
Australia-Tuvalu treaty recognizing unchangeable statehood despite eroded coastlines.

An AOSIS Leaders Meeting took place ahead of the HLM on sea level rise, on 23 September. During this meeting, SIDS leaders agreed to the Declaration on Sea Level Rise and Statehood and recognized the decision to advance the Fund for Loss and Damage, the adoption of the BBNJ Agreement under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), and the UNGA’s decision to move ahead with the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index (MVI), as “reasons to celebrate.”

Addressing the leaders, Samoa’s Prime Minister Afioga Fiame Naomi Mataafa highlighted SIDS’ leadership role in clarifying international law in the era of climate change. She described the Declaration on Sea Level Rise and Statehood as the “next step in the progressive development of the law.”

According to an AOSIS press release, SIDS’ other initiatives to preserve their rights in the face of the changing climate include the AOSIS Leaders’ 2021 declaration affirming that maritime jurisdictional zones, such as the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), are immutable and “shall continue to apply without reduction,” regardless of the changes caused by rising sea levels. SIDS have also sought advisory opinions from the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) and the International Court of Justice (ICJ), to clarify international obligations of States with respect to climate change. [Publication: AOSIS Declaration on Sea-Level Rise and Statehood] [UN News Story] [UN Meetings Coverage: 25 September 2024]

* * *

This story is part of a project that seeks to raise awareness and build momentum and knowledge around the ICJ advisory opinion on obligations of States in respect of climate change and to promote a better understanding of the implications of the advisory opinion among sustainable development decision makers.