Summary
The Nordic Council has urged its member states to actively participate in the global conversation around criminalising the most serious crimes against the environment.
The decision comes on the back of years of regional advocacy work from members of the Ecocide Alliance parliamentary network
Council’s cross-party endorsement of ecocide law conversation viewed as an expression of intent and a display of Nordic countries' unity in their efforts to tackle the climate and ecological crisis.
The Nordic Council has voted unanimously during its most recent session in Oslo, Norway to adopt a recommendation calling for ‘the Nordic governments to participate in relevant international discussions to criminalise serious offences against the natural environment in both wartime and peacetime¹.’
The proposal was brought by the Council’s Committee for a Sustainable Nordic Region and sponsored by delegates Janine Alm Ericson (Sweden), Rebecka Le Moine (Sweden) and Simon Holmström (Åland islands).
The consensus decision from the Council, which includes Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, and the autonomous regions of Åland, the Faroe Islands, and Greenland, is the result of years of advocacy work by Holmström, Le Moine (who wrote the proposal), and other members of the Ecocide Alliance, a global parliamentary network founded in 2021.
The proposal was presented to the Council as a result of dedicated negotiations at committee-level, led in large part by Holmström, and was given final consideration by a plenary session of the Nordic Council on Thursday 2nd November. The plenary session included multiple supportive interventions from attending ministers, including Bjarni Benediktsson, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Iceland, the current chairing country of the Nordic Council of Ministers, who said.
“We have had discussions regarding ecocide in the Icelandic Parliament, and I think that behind this idea of adding ecocide to the international discussion there is sound thinking. It is a great ambition in terms of environmental issues and the future of the earth.”
Elina Valtonen, the Finnish Minister of Foreign Affairs, expressed her opinion on Nordic countries recognising ecocide as an international crime in both peacetime and conflict, stating,
“We in the Nordic countries know how important [the environment] is to the quality of life and the future and for our children, and therefore it could actually be a good idea to look at [ecocide legislation] at the Nordic level so we could promote these values better.”
Simon Holmström, Member of the Åland Parliament, Finland and one of the resolution’s proposers, said,
“I could not be more pleased with this outcome. While many states have previously expressed an interest in following the ecocide conversation, this proposal takes a more ambitious stance in that it involves active conversation. Also, this was a unanimous vote. It is a great statement of strength for Nordic cooperation to find a political consensus for stronger international legislation to protect our planet.
“This Nordic message will undoubtedly contribute to building momentum for other international bodies to follow suit and address large-scale environmental damage on a broader scale. It is now up to the global community to unite and take collective action to safeguard our planet from irreversible harm.”
Rebecka Le Moine, Swedish Member of Parliament and one of the resolution’s co-proposers, said,
“In this age of climate and ecological crisis, the Nordic countries can and must become key actors in the work to criminalise ecocide. This momentous decision is the result of years of political negotiation and cooperation. Work that is being felt far beyond the Nordics and that we must continue.
“All Nordic governments have now been formally called upon to actively participate in the global conversation around criminalising ecocide. It’s a giant leap in the right direction.”
Jojo Mehta, co-Founder and Executive Director of Stop Ecocide International, said:
"This is hugely positive news from the Nordic Council. We are currently missing an international legal mechanism that protects all of us from the most severe harms to nature, harms that have a transnational impact and, therefore, cannot be left to domestic legislatures to regulate.
“When nature is not protected by international criminal law, we as a species are not protected. Legal recognition of ecocide is rapidly becoming seen as an essential step by national parliaments and regional organisations around the world.
“In recent months ecocide bills have been proposed or progressed in the EU, Brazil, the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain (Catalunya) and Mexico. Leaders across the globe are beginning to wake up to the very real dangers we face, and a strong legislative direction of travel is emerging.”
¹ Translation of the agreed proposal. Original documentation can be found here.