The Chair of the New Green Transition co-organises a conference on the fight against climate change at the University of Valencia

The team of the Inter-University Chair in New Green Transition at the University of Valencia, led by its director, Aurora Pedro, co-organised the conference ‘The fight against climate change and the recognition of the rights of nature: synergies of Mediterranean cooperation’, which took place on Wednesday 29 and Thursday 30 June at the Faculty of Law of the University of Valencia. The sessions could also be followed on the Internet at https://www.uv.es/eventos/. 

 

The first day was dedicated to climate change and was inaugurated by the Dean of the Faculty, Francisco Javier Palao, together with Carmen Lloret-Catalá, Director of the UNESCO Chair in Development Studies; Ignacio de Julián, Deputy Director for Institutional Relations of Casa Mediterráneo; Aurora Pedro, Secretary of the Congress, and Rubén Martínez Dalmau, Director. In the inaugural conference, Jorge Olcina, from the University of Alicante, spoke on “Climate change on the Spanish Mediterranean coast: the urgent need for adaptation”.

 

In turn, Professor Pedro spoke on ‘The Mediterranean as a scenario for new instruments of action in the process of green transition’, followed by Marco Aparicio, from the University of Girona, who gave a talk entitled ‘Energy transition and climate (in)justice. Critical analysis of the model for the implementation of renewables in the Mediterranean context’. In the afternoon, Margarita Miñarro, from the Universitat Jaume I, spoke on ‘Obstacles and drivers of green occupation in the Mediterranean Arc’, with special reference to Spain. Adoración Guamán, from the UV, then gave a presentation on ‘The fight against climate change and the environment in human rights due diligence standards’. The day ended with a paper by Karla Georgina Martínez, from the Università degli studi di Brescia, on ‘Analysis of climate change as a cause of migration’.

 

The rights of nature in the Mediterranean were the focus of the second and final day of the conference. Silvia Bagni, from the University of Bologna, opened the day with the paper “The contributions of the rights of nature in the construction of a relational paradigm of rights”. José Chofre, from the University of Alicante, then spoke on “Climate change and rights of nature: a Mediterranean perspective”. Next, Ainhoa Lasa, from the University of the Basque Country (UPV-EHU) gave a presentation on ‘The Mediterranean Sea as a subject of rights: the constitutional legal framework in the proposed Charter of Fundamental Rights of Nature in the EU’. The next speaker was José Ángel Camisón, from the University of Alicante, who spoke on ‘The Union for the Mediterranean: a way to achieve recognition of the ‘Mare Nostrum’ as a subject of rights’. Rubén Martínez Dalmau, professor at the UV and director of the conference, then spoke on ‘The ecocentric turn in the United Nations and the European Union: the 2030 Agenda and the European Green Pact’. Finally, Teresa Vicente, from the University of Murcia, gave the closing conference, on ‘The rights of nature and the Popular Legislative Initiative to recognise legal personality in the Mar Menor Lagoon and its Basin’.

 

Promoted by the Second Vice-presidency and the Department of Housing and Bioclimatic Architecture of the Generalitat Valenciana, the Chair has the participation of the 5 Valencian public universities.