Tutu & Robinson Deliver Verdict on Human Cost of Climate Change

Archbishop Desmond Tutu and former president of Ireland, Mary Robinson, have joined forces at the world’s first international climate hearing. Addressing the consequences of climate change affecting the lives of people worldwide, the pair called on global leaders to take a stand in fighting what Archbishop Tutu called “the world’s most important battle.”

Citing the international human rights law that states “in no case may a people be deprived of its means of subsistence,” President Robinson points out that “millions of the world's poorest people's rights are being violated every day” because of the excessive carbon emissions of industrialized countries.

This message comes after thousands of individual hearings took place across 35 countries. Supported by Oxfam, a group of organizations working to bring about positive and lasting change for the environment, the investigation revealed more than 1.5 million people who felt climate change was destroying their livelihoods.