Parliamentary Ombudsman participates in ELSA panel on justice in the age of climate change crisis
Published November 27, 2025
The Parliamentary Ombudsman, Judge Joseph Zammit McKeon, participated as a panellist in a public event organised by European Law Students’ Association Malta to mark ELSA Day. The discussion, titled Justice in the age of a climate crisis, was held on 26 November at the National Library of Malta.
The event focused on the link between climate justice and human rights, examining how legal systems and institutions respond to the growing challenges posed by the climate crisis. Speakers discussed whether existing international frameworks adequately reflect principles of fairness and responsibility, particularly in a context of geopolitical shifts and uneven global impacts.
The panel brought together Judge Joseph Zammit McKeon, the Hon. Dr Darren Carabott, Shadow Minister for Home Affairs and Security, Dr Jose Herrera, former Minister, and Prof. Michael Briguglio, Associate Professor at the Department of Sociology within the University of Malta. The discussion addressed the role of human rights in shaping climate responses, the impact of overdevelopment on Malta’s environmental vulnerability, and the importance of local governance and community led action in advancing meaningful climate solutions.
The following are some of the main arguments submitted by the Ombudsman during the Q & A session in the presence of an audience of law students:
- Amend Chapter II, the Declaration of Principles of the Constitution of Malta, by introducing an ad hoc provision that expressly protects the environment and addresses the damaging risks of climate change. Adding a specific reference to climate protection to the current wording of Article 9(2) would constitute a clear commitment to the way forward.
- Although Article 21 of the Constitution is clear in stating that the provisions of the Declaration of Principles are not enforceable in any court, the same article also affirms that these provisions are fundamental to the governance of the country and that the State has an obligation to embrace them when making laws.
- On a wider and transnational level, climate change is not only an environmental issue. It is essentially a matter of justice and, consequently, of universal fundamental rights, including the right to life, the right to health, the right to water, the right to adequate housing, and the right to food.
- Unlike environmental harm, climate change is without borders and sweeping in its extent, as it spares no place or community.
- As far as the environment is concerned, international legal frameworks are already in place or are being developed, notably but not only within the EU. Member States have regulations and directives that guide governments in implementing measures that promote clean, healthy, and sustainable development, together with mechanisms to ensure that these are effectively applied at national level.
- He referred inter alia to the three climate change judgments of the European Court of Human Rights, delivered by the Grand Chamber, in KlimaSeniorinnen v Switzerland, Carême v France, and Duarte Agostinho and Others v Portugal and Others.
- He also laid emphasis on the 140 page Advisory Opinion of 23 July 2025 issued by the International Court of Justice of the United Nations on the Legal Obligations of States in respect of Climate Change, in which, on the basis of factual findings and the best available scientific data, the Court acknowledged the severity of the crisis and declared climate change to be an urgent and existential threat to humanity.
The event also included addresses by Sereena Azzopardi Muscat, Vice President for Academic Activities, with organisational contributions from Megan Ekezie, Director for Academic Activities, Andrea De Marco, Vice President for Seminars and Conferences, and Gianni Farrugia, Director for Seminars and Conferences.
ELSA Malta forms part of the wider ELSA International network, which brings together more than 50,000 law students across Europe. Recognised by the Senate of the University of Malta, ELSA Malta represents law students at the University and organises academic, professional and public engagement initiatives throughout the year to encourage debate and promote legal education.
