We need ethical and spiritual philosophies today that can guide us to environmental and social regeneration, restoring balance with the planet, protecting the equal dignity of all people, and stewardship for future generations. The climate crisis is, among many other things, a spiritual crisis.🌍

Climate change solutions have to be tethered to larger issues of economic justice. We can't speak about 'carbon capture' without also asking questions about poverty and the carbon emissions being generated by a select few.

Weekend reading ⭐️

Happy with this recent self-portrait ⭐️ I’m experimenting with turning these small pencil sketches into paintings with gouache

Rather than treating climate change as a 2050 or 2100 issue, I encourage lawyers and policymakers to situate current warming as bookmarking the end of the stable Holocene.l This emphasizes the scale of human intervention—enough to terminate an entire age It also underscores the challenges ahead 🌍

COP30 must address the false sense of security provided by the 1.5°-2°C language in the Paris Agreement. States and policymakers may believe they are still “on track” as long as global temperatures hover around 1.5–2°C, even though catastrophic nonlinear changes can trigger below those thresholds.

With COP30 just around the corner, it's important to recall that the Paris framework is built to address the linear impacts of warming, not nonlinear destabilization Once the climate system moves into tipping-point dynamics, the Paris architecture starts to lose efficacy, maybe even its relevance

The end of the Holocene, and the emergence of a new and hotter climate era, suggests the need for a civilizational-level effort necessary to stabilize the climate. This effort has yet to meaningfully materialize. Put more simply: we need to think bigger—much bigger—about addressing climate change

Excited to see some research on sea-level rise and international published soon ⭐ In this book chapter, I analyze the law of self-determination and the law of genocide and review whether these frameworks can help us understand sea-level rise. www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edi...

We have to stop treating climate change as a 'technocratic' issue. Climate change is deeply political and tethered to international law and international justice. We have to start connecting climate with other crises in international law.

Stunning personal threats against diplomats—and their families—made by the US in order to delay clean shipping rules. Just a brazen display of personal retribution in order to keep delaying a just transition. www.politico.eu/article/us-a...

The fight for a stable climate and a habitable planet is, at heart, the fight for the international rule of law. We must now seek ways to apply the force of law against planetary lawbreakers. open.substack.com/pub/daveinde...

Centuries ago, Magna Carta imposed limits on the king to respect the law ⚖️ Today, we need a new “Magna Carta moment” to enforce international law against planetary lawbreakers 🌍 open.substack.com/pub/daveinde...

Climate change is a threat to ecosystem and human health, but it is also fundamentally a social justice issue...we can still create a turning point. It begins by embracing our shared humanity and recognizing the profound interconnectedness of all life on the planet. academic.oup.com/bioscience/a...

At a networking event, someone asked me why I am researching climate My answer: climate change is the greatest threat we face. Not just physical impacts, but our social response, and our ability to protect dignity, equal rights and human rights All curious people should be focused on this issue 🌍

The climate governance regime enshrined by the Paris Agreement assumes linear climate impacts. But now our world faces non-linear impacts, particularly climate tipping points. Policymakers must understand and address non-linearity. Put simply —"what is the plan for non-linear climate impacts?"

In every aspect of our lives and in our politics, we assume the existence of a stable climate system. This is no longer a valid assumption. Now we must align as a species on a common goal of climate stability. Human rights and equal rights must be at the core of such climate action.

Current climate policy and governance assumes linear warming, not nonlinear planetary destabilization. With tipping points now being breached, this assumption is deeply flawed. A new governance, legal, and political vision is now required to address tipping points and stabilize the climate 🌍

It is mindboggling to me that 30 years after the UNFCCC was ratified, and 10 years after Paris, climate policies in high-emissions States remain reactive, not precautionary. I am continually stunned at the lack of urgency related to ending the era of fossil fuels.

The Paris Agreement does not mention climate tipping points. This is a major gap that must now be addressed. Policymakers may have a false sense of security that as long as temperatures hover ~1.5°–2°C, we can manage—even though catastrophic nonlinear changes can trigger below those thresholds.

I'm presenting some of my governance and legal research tomorrow on how governments must address climate change tipping points ⭐️ Key takeaway — current climate change governance assumes linear warming, not nonlinear planetary destabilization. We need a far stronger framework for tipping elements

Governments are not free to do anything they want. They are limited by law Human rights treaties, international law, and due process restrain governments In the face of climate change, governments also have limits. They are now obligated to stop the conduct that is dangerously warming the planet

The mostly sedentary lifestyles of the Holocene—and high energy lifestyles—are going to have a major reality check from extreme weather and a warming planet. Migration is the story of humanity. As climate impacts worsen, we need to take a human rights based approach to the movement of people 🌍

mosquitos now being found in Iceland is a lesson about climate change. —it underscores how other species (including insects) are moving into new niches —it underscores the health threats from climate change (mosquitoes are vectors) —it is a preview of human migration from environmental impacts

Democracy and a stable climate go hand in hand, according to experts speaking at a recent UN conference. open.substack.com/pub/daveinde...

Excited to be participating at the UN forum on human rights, democracy, and the rule of law — this year, focused on climate change 🌍

“Only with a combination of decisive policy & civil society action can the world tip its trajectory from facing existential Earth system tipping point risks to seizing positive tipping point opportunities.” - Prof. Tim Lenton, @gsiexeter.bsky.social #ClimateEmergency

Watching the US be reconfigured by the Project 2025 blueprint is something else. They are ticking boxes at an astonishing rate. 8 months and 22 weeks in 39 months to go The US will be unrecognisable in 2029.

Sunday morning candle (graphite and pen on paper

Governments must re-orient their purpose to become guardians of planetary well-being—so that both peoples and the environment may exist and thrive together The transformation we now face is not merely technical or economic; it is constitutional and philosophical open.substack.com/pub/daveinde...

In an era of climate disruption, the central task of government must evolve. In addition to defending fundamental freedoms, a core purpose of government must be to restore balance between humanity, our societies, and fragile Earth systems. open.substack.com/pub/daveinde...

The journey back to a stable climate will take hundreds or even thousands of years. This journey must begin asap. It will require a different perspective on why we are here, and what we are doing with our short lives in this critical moment of human history 🌍

It is not yet too late to rehabilitate and reform the UN system, including the Security Council, but such reform will depend on the United States’ willingness to support a system where international law holds ultimate authority. open.substack.com/pub/daveinde...

It is vital to connect the dots between the breakdown of democracy and the failure to protect the environment. In the U.S., these crises stem from a shared delusion—that 20th-century policies and programs can still carry us through a 21st-century crisis. open.substack.com/pub/daveinde...

It is vital to connect the dots between the breakdown of democracy and the failure to protect the environment. In the U.S., these crises stem from a shared delusion—that 20th-century policies and programs can still carry us through a 21st-century crisis.

In the era of climate disruption, the central task of government must evolve. In addition to defending fundamental rights, a core purpose of government must be to restore balance between humanity and fragile Earth systems 🌳

The prospect of tipping points at and after 1.5°C of warming is a significant and even existential challenge to peoples and nations, no matter how wealthy or technologically advanced We need a vision of a world in which we can address these challenges 🌍

There is no way that governments will be able to manage climate impacts so long as they resort to war and conflict in their international relations. Peacebuilding and international justice go hand-in-hand with maintaining a habitable planet. substack.com/home/post/p-...

It’s essential that climate policy be connected to human rights—including economic and social right—as well as a movement to build a more peaceful world. substack.com/@daveinderco...

Policymakers must think much bigger about the vision of a habitable planet. Energy and environmental policies are only the beginning. We also need to focus on protecting fundamental rights, promoting health, and envisioning a more peaceful and just world.

Well-established climate projections place the Earth on track for 3°C of warming by the end of the century. At and above 1.5°C, the risk of triggering climate tipping points increases. It is essential to implement an urgent plan to stop this planetary threat and protect our human rights 🌍

Instead of geoengineering, I would much prefer a policy response rooted in: —a just energy transition, —social and cultural change in high-energy societies, and —a long-term plan (perhaps centuries-long) to stabilize the climate system based on environmental restoration I resonate with this 🌍

The international legal order is caught in a 'doom loop'. Each breach of international law poisons global cooperation even more, leading to increasing instability and anarchy. Disrupting this doom loop to restore the international rule of law and protect human rights must become a top priority 🌍

Just as governments have industrial policy and monetary policy, there is an urgent need for planetary policy. How will we collectively stop warming? Preserve biodiversity? Keep the Arctic cold? What is the plan to maintain a habitable planet? We need policymakers who can speak like this 🌍

Trump spreading fossil fuel propaganda lies at the UN - what an embarrassing president for the US.

Climate change is far more a political issue than a technological one. The impacts of climate change are already falling disproportionately on marginalizes communities—those without political power. Technocratic idealism feels less 'controversial,' but does not reflect the realities of power.

Having a climate denier as president underscores that climate change is far more a political and social issue at this time than a technological one. We won't be able to stop global warming without a broad-based political effort that can envision the just energy transition.

What will our world look like in 2030? I think it takes a kind of courage to even speculate. Social and environmental trends are not good. Governance is fragile domestically and broken at the global level. Climate impacts continue to accelerate and cascade. We have to work for a better future 🌍

The Holocene is over and the Earth is now barreling towards a much hotter state. All of our fundamental rights are wrapped together with the issue of a habitable planet. Equal rights means ending all forms of sacrifice zones and ensuring that all people can live with dignity ⭐️

I don’t think we’ll see real climate action without a critical shift in mindset that sees the Earth as a shared home for all people and other life. In tandem—true governance and the international rule of law ⭐️