Operationalizing Sustainable Development: Ecological Integrity as a Grundnorm of International Law

Abstract

The current process of designing a set of post‐2015 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) offers an opportunity to clarify the underlying idea of sustainable development. At its core is ecological sustainability, defined as the integrity of Earth's life‐support systems, or ecological integrity in short. This definition is reflective of the science and ethics of planetary boundaries that are referred to in international environmental agreements, and can be formulated as a priority goal in the context of the SDGs. The article argues for developing ecological integrity as a fundamental principle or grundnorm of international law, which is similar to the grundnorm character that human rights or the rule of law have in domestic and international law.

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