Human dignity in a world Constitution:
normative foundations, institutional architecture, and jurisprudential standards in the contemporary context
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.61454/rsd18v65Keywords:
human dignity, world constitutionalism, right to a healthy environment, intergenerational justice, global governance, human rights, principle of proportionalityAbstract
This article examines human dignity as a normative foundation for a potential World Constitution amid climate crisis, technological expansion, and deep global interdependence. Through a review of key legal developments, it highlights three anchors: (1) the UN General Assembly’s 2022 recognition of the human right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment; (2) the Inter-American Court’s Advisory Opinion OC-23/17, which affirms the intrinsic link between environment, life, integrity, and human dignity, along with States’ extraterritorial duties of prevention and cooperation; and (3) groundbreaking climate jurisprudence, including the German Federal Constitutional Court’s 2021 ruling on intergenerational justice and the European Court of Human Rights’ 2024 decisions, particularly KlimaSeniorinnen v. Switzerland, recognizing State responsibility for inadequate climate action. The article proposes universal constitutional principles—ecological minimum, proportionality, enhanced cooperation, and technological safeguards and concludes that human dignity can structure a polycentric model of global governance integrating human rights and environmental protection.
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