(Click here to read or download the report on Guidelines for Climate Justice.)

Climate Justice refers to the fact that much of the planet bears no responsibility for climate change, whereas the entire planet suffers its consequences. It is a striking injustice that the world’s poorest groups, who also pollute the least, suffer the most under climate change. “We live in a global village and we each have the responsibility to protect our planet. Pollution has a cost and it must be borne by the polluter”, said Forum President, Kofi Annan.

Prof Calie Pistorius, Vice-Chancellor and Principal of the University of Pretoria, said that climate change disproportionately affects developing countries. Students and academia can play a critical role in the sensitisation and mobilisation process to call people to action.

Guests from the Global Humanitarian Forum and the University’s management also planted three Tree Wisteria trees (Bolusanthis speciosus), well known for absorbing carbon emissions, on the UP campus.

Kofi Annan founded the Global Humanitarian Forum in Geneva, together with the Swiss government in 2007, following his retirement as UN chief. The Forum is an independent and impartial international organisation working to harness the full potential of the global society for overcoming key humanitarian concerns.

Information on the Global Humanitarian Forum and its activities can also be found on http://www.ghf-ge.org