The principle of intergenerational equity, enshrined in 2015 in the Paris Agreement, is of fundamental importance for our future. This concept is based on the need to ensure justice between present and future generations, addressing the environmental and economic challenges that await us. In practice, it gives concrete form to what was already stated in Article 3.1 of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
That historic agreement, signed by 195 countries, represented a significant step forward in the way we conceive the fight against climate change and the actions to be taken, because it formally acknowledged that the actions to be taken must, in some way, be agreed with the generations on whom they will fall.
Over the years, we have witnessed ever more evident climate change and devastating effects on our planet’s biodiversity. Intergenerational equity invites us to consider our current behaviour and how it may negatively affect the lives of our descendants. It appears increasingly clear that it is our duty to act responsibly to preserve the environment for future generations.
