ICJ Affirms Climate Duties; Jane Goodall Dies

Jane Goodall has died; her pioneering research showing chimpanzees use tools, form complex social bonds and engage in conflict reshaped understanding of human–animal kinship and underscored the urgency of protecting wildlife amid climate-driven ecosystem threats. Ahead of COP30, Pakistani experts at a Global Ethical Stocktake dialogue urged that justice, culture and ethics be treated as core pillars of climate action alongside finance and technology to avoid perpetuating inequality. Climate change is framed as a crisis of intergenerational justice, with analyses warning children and young people face rising exposure to heatwaves, disasters and mental-health burdens, and disadvantaged and Indigenous youth hit hardest. The International Court of Justice’s July 2025 advisory opinion affirmed binding state duties to prevent significant environmental harm, raise ambition under the Paris Agreement, and hold governments accountable for corporate emissions, linking climate action to health equity. Leaders from the Global South say chronic shortfalls and poor-quality climate finance have eroded trust in COP processes and are demanding far larger, fairer finance — “trillions not billions” — for COP30 in Belém to rebuild solidarity and enable adaptation.