3 to 4 December 2025 | BRAC CDM, Savar, Bangladesh
The two-day International Conference on Environmental Justice 2025 was successfully convened on the 3 to 4 December 2025 at BRAC CDM, Savar. The conference was jointly organised by Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association (BELA)/FoE Bangladesh, Friends of the Earth International (FoEI), the Embassy of Sweden, and UNDP Bangladesh. The event brought together a broad coalition of stakeholders to advance dialogue, solidarity, and collective action on pressing environmental justice challenges in Bangladesh and globally.
The conference gathered representatives from local and national NGOs, community leaders, activists, researchers, lawyers, government officials, development partners, and strategic allies. In total, participants included 85 international civil society organisations from 50 countries, all members of Friends of the Earth International. This made the conference a significant global convening on environmental justice.
The conference opened with an inaugural session featuring high-level national and international representatives. The ceremony was graced by:
- Ms Farhina Ahmed, Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
- Mr Sarder M. Asaduzzaman, Assistant Resident Representative, UNDP Bangladesh
- Ms Nayoka Martinez Bäckström, First Secretary and Deputy Head of Development Cooperation Section, Embassy of Sweden in Dhaka
The event was further enriched by virtual contributions from:
- Mr Hemantha Withanage, Chair, Friends of the Earth International
- Ms Syeda Rizwana Hasan, Hon’ble Advisor, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and Ministry of Water Resources, Government of Bangladesh
- Remarks were also delivered by Ms Taslima Islam, Chief Executive of BELA, and Mr Mirza Quamul Hasan, Advocate for the Supreme Court of Bangladesh and Chairman of BELA.
The primary objective of the conference was to facilitate collective reflection and strategic dialogue on urgent environmental justice issues affecting communities in Bangladesh and beyond. Discussions were structured around key thematic areas, including: pollution, climate displacement, oceans and rivers, food sovereignty, renewable energy transitions, forest and biodiversity protection, gender justice, and movement-building
The conference sought to strengthen global solidarity, deepen collaboration among movements and institutions, and generate actionable pathways toward a more equitable and sustainable future.
Participants shared lived experiences, research findings, legal perspectives, and policy insights. Testimonies from frontline communities were central to the discussions. These grounded global debates in local realities and reinforced the urgency of rights-based and people-centred solutions.
Unified Call to Action
A key outcome of the conference was the adoption of a Unified Call to Action on Environmental Justice. This reflected insights from communities, government representatives, scientists, lawyers, farmers, and civil society actors from more than 70 countries. The Call to Action affirmed that environmental justice is not optional but a survival imperative.
The following priority areas were identified:
Pollution Control and Enforcement
Urgent action is needed to address multidimensional pollution through updated laws, transparent monitoring, strengthened regulatory institutions, judicial oversight, zero tolerance for illegal activities, and meaningful community participation.
Climate Justice and Governance Reform
Climate governance must move beyond negotiations to justice. This includes predictable and non-debt climate finance, reduced bureaucratic barriers, stronger civil society engagement, and accountability for fossil fuel producers.
Protection of Rivers and Oceans
Rivers and oceans must be protected as living entities through designated guardian institutions, coordinated governance mechanisms, community stewardship, and enforceable legal protections.
Food Sovereignty and Farmers’ Rights
Ensuring food sovereignty requires secure land rights, protection of native seeds, strict pesticide regulation, and sustained investment in agroecology and cooperative models.
Forests, Biodiversity, and Indigenous Stewardship
The conference called for legal recognition of Indigenous governance systems, implementation of Free, Prior and Informed Consent, prevention of harmful land conversions, community-based conservation, and accountability for illegal logging.
Just and People-Centred Energy Transition
Energy transitions must avoid replicating injustices by prioritising community-owned renewable systems, a time-bound fossil fuel phase-out, enabling regulations, and justice-aligned climate finance.
Gender Justice
Gender justice must be integrated across all environmental and climate actions through gender-responsive policies, dedicated budgets, feminist and intersectional approaches, and support for women and gender-diverse environmental defenders.
Community Power and Movement-Building
Environmental justice efforts must amplify community narratives and leadership by integrating community-generated evidence into policymaking, strengthening alliances, investing in grassroots monitoring and storytelling, and protecting environmental human rights defenders.
The conference reaffirmed that solutions to environmental injustice already exist within communities, movements, scientific knowledge, legal frameworks, and government commitments. What is required now is alignment, accountability, and decisive implementation.
Participants collectively reaffirmed that environmental justice is a political, moral, and human rights imperative. Actions must be bold, inclusive, rights-based, gender-just, community-rooted, and ecologically sound.
The conference concluded with a strong call for governments, civil society, international partners, and communities to move from dialogue to coordinated and transformative action.
The International Conference on Environmental Justice 2025 stands as a shared commitment to continued struggle and shared hope toward a future where people, nature, and dignity thrive together.
