The Establishment of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change as the Basis of the International Climate Legal Regime (1985–1992)

INTRODUCTION. The article examines the historical establishment of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and its role as the foundational framework for the international climate legal regime. The study highlights the importance of the choices made during the drafting of the Convention, analyzing their long–term impact on global climate governance. The research explores the events leading up to the Earth Summit (Rio Conference) in 1992, where the UNFCCC was adopted, and investigates how its fundamental principles and obligations shaped subsequent climate policies, including the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement. The study aims to contextualize the Convention within the broader historical and legal developments in international environmental law.

MATERIALS AND METHODS. The research follows a qualitative legal–historical approach, utilizing primary sources, including treaty texts, General Assembly resolutions, advisory opinions from international courts, and official conference proceedings. Additionally, secondary sources, such as academic commentary, environmental law textbooks, and journal articles, provide insights into the evolution of international climate law. The study is divided into two key phases. 1. Historical Analysis: A chronological examination of the negotiations preceding the UNFCCC, focusing on the Stockholm Conference (1972), the Montreal Protocol (1987), and scientific reports from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). 2. Legal Framework Analysis: An evaluation of the legal principles enshrined in the UNFCCC, such as sustainable development, common but differentiated responsibilities (CBDR), and intergenerational equity, as well as an assessment of its institutional mechanisms, including the role of the Conference of the Parties (COP).

RESEARCH RESULTS. The UNFCCC as a Normative Framework: Despite being considered a “framework convention” with broad and non– binding commitments, the UNFCCC introduced fundamental legal principles that later became the cornerstone of climate governance. Legal Innovations and Institutionalization: The Convention established a system of cooperation among states, creating institutional mechanisms such as the COPs, which facilitated continued legal evolution in climate governance. The establishment of the UNFCCC Secretariat further institutionalized climate negotiations. Enduring Influence on International Law: The Convention remains a reference point for climate litigation and international advisory opinions, particularly in recent cases before the Inter–American Court of Human Rights and the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea. These legal bodies have increasingly drawn upon UNFCCC principles to determine states' obligations concerning climate change.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION. The article concludes that the UNFCCC, despite its perceived initial weaknesses, has proven to be a resilient and foundational legal instrument in international climate governance. The Convention's principles and procedural mechanisms have enabled the development of binding legal commitments, such as those found in the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement. Moreover, its flexible institutional design has allowed it to adapt to emerging challenges, such as climate litigation and advisory proceedings in international courts. Looking forward, the UNFCCC is expected to continue shaping future legal obligations related to climate action, particularly as climate disputes become more prominent in international judicial bodies. The study underscores the ongoing relevance of the UNFCCC in the face of evolving environmental challenges, reaffirming its status as the standard framework for global climate governance. 

1. Adede A.O. The road to Rio: The development of negotiations. – The environment after Rio: International law and economics. 1994.

2. Barral V. Sustainable development in international law. LGDJ. 2015. P. 41.

3. Bodansky D. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change: A commentary. – Yale Journal of International Law. 1993. Vol. 18 (1). P. 451.

4. Bodansky D. The history of the global climate change regime. – International Relations and Global Climate Change. 2001. Vol. 23 (1). P. 505.

5. Boyle A., Ghaleigh, N.S. Climate change and international law beyond UNFCCC. – C.P. Carlarne, K.R. Gray, R. Tarasofsky (eds.). The Oxford handbook of international climate change law. Oxford University Press. 2016. P. 30.

6. Brunnée J. Reweaving the fabric of international law? Patterns of consent in environmental framework agreements. – R. Wolfrum, V. Röben (eds.). Developments of international law in treaty making. Springer. 2005. P. 101-126.

7. Camenzuli K. The development of international environmental law at the multilateral environmental agreements' Conference of the Parties and its validity. – Environmental Law Review of Eastern & Central Europe. 2019. Vol. 19 (1). P. 1.

8. Churchill R., Ulfstein G. Autonomous institutional arrangements in multilateral environmental agreements: A little–noticed phenomenon in international law. – American Journal of International Law. 2000. Vol. 94. P. 623.

9. Corrêa do Lago A.A. Stockholm, Rio, Johannesburg: Brazil and the three United Nations environmental conferences. FUNAG. 2007.

10. Dal Ri Jr. A., Andrade M.C. de. The fragile genesis of legal protection of the environment in the multilateral trade system: An analysis of the period from Bretton Woods to the Tokyo Round (1947–1979). – Sequência. 2016. Vol. 37 (1). P. 194.

11. Dal Ri Jr. A., Andrade M.C. de. The Uruguay Round and the environment: The flowering of environmental legal protection in the multilateral trading system. – Revista Brasileira de Direito. 2017. Vol. 13 (1). P. 295.

12. Dal Ri Jr. A., Noschang P.G. Contradictions and dilemmas in the historical itinerary of environmental protection in Mercosur. – L.O. Baptista, L.Ramina, T.S. Friedrich (eds.). Contemporary international law. Juruá. 2014. P. 45.

13. De P Toledo A., Lima L.C. (eds.). Brazilian commentary on the Rio Declaration on environment and development. D'Plácido. 2023.

14. Del Vecchio, A., Dal Ri Jr., A. (eds.). Il diritto internazionale dell’ambiente dopo il vertice di Johannesburg. Scientifica. 2005.

15. Dupuy R.-J. (ed.). The future of the international law of the environment. Nijhoff. 1985.

16. Foo K.B. The Rio Declaration and its influence on international environmental law. – Singapore Journal of Legal Studies. Dec 1992. P. 347.

17. Giorgetti C. From Rio to Kyoto: A study of the involvement of non–governmental organisations in the negotiations on climate change. – New York University Environmental Law Journal. 1999. P. 201.

18. Goldberg D.M. As the world burns: Negotiating the Framework Convention on Climate Change. – Georgetown International Environmental Law Review. 1993. Vol. 5 (2). P. 239.

19. Goldemberg J. The road to Rio. – I.M. Mintzer, J.A. Leonard (eds.). Negotiating climate change Cambridge University Press. 1994. P. 175-185.

20. Grossi P. The point and the line: History of law and positive history in the formation of the jurist of our time. – P. Grossi. Law between power and order (A. Dal Ri Jr., Trans.). Del-Rey. 2010. P. 1.

21. Johnston S. The role of science. – L. Rajamani, J. Peel (eds.). The Oxford handbook of international environmental law. Oxford University Press. 2021. P. 254.

22. Lesniewska F. UNFCCC Conference of the Parties: The key international forest law-makers for better or for worse. – International Environmental Law and Governance. 2015. P. 116-142.

23. Lima L.C. A resolução de controvérsias ambientais no Direito Internacional. – L.C. Lima, A.L.O. Rocha (eds.). Cadernos de Direito Internacional da Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais – Volume II. Dialética Editora. 2023. P. 13-48.

24. Lima L.C. Climate change before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. – Rivista di Diritto Internazionale. 2025. Vol. 108 (1).

25. Lowe V. Sustainable development and unsustainable arguments. – A. Boyle, D. Freestone (eds.). International law and sustainable development. Oxford University Press. 1999. P. 19.

26. MacKenzie R. The role of dispute settlement in the climate regime. – J. Brunnée, M. Doelle, L. Rajamani (eds.). Promoting compliance in an evolving climate regime. Cambridge University Press. 2012. P. 395-417.

27. Mahmoudi S. The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP): An assessment. – Asian Yearbook of International Law. 1995. Vol. 5 (1). P. 175.

28. Mayer B. The UNFCCC regime, from Rio to Paris. – B. Mayer. The international law on climate change. Cambridge University Press. 2021.

29. Mayer B. International law obligations on climate change mitigation. Oxford University Press. 2022.

30. Michaelowa K., Michaelowa A. The growing influence of the UNFCCC Secretariat on the Clean Development Mechanism. – International Environmental Agreements: Politics, Law and Economics. 2017. Vol. 17 (2). P. 247.

31. Morgan J. The power of civil society. – H. Jepsen, M. Lundgren, K. Monhein (eds.). Negotiating the Paris Agreement: The insider stories. Cambridge University Press. 2021. P. 245-265.

32. Moura A.B. de, Posenato, N.. The promotion of sustainable development in the EU 'new generation' free trade agreements and its impact on third countries. – Nuovi Autoritarismi e Democrazie: Diritto, Istituzioni, Società. 2021. Vol. 3. P. 1.

33. Petsonk C.A. The role of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in the development of international environmental law. – The American University Journal of International Law and Policy. 1990. Vol. 5 (2). P. 351.

34. Rajamani L. Re-negotiating Kyoto: A review of the Sixth Conference of Parties to the Framework Convention on Climate Change. – Colorado Journal of International Environmental Law and Policy Yearbook. 2001. Vol. 12 (1). P. 201-238.

35. Raustiala K. Nonstate actors in the global climate regime. – U. Luterbacher, D.F. Sprinz (eds.). International relations and global climate change. The MIT Press. 2001. P. 95-117.

36. Roben V. Conference (meeting) of states parties. – Max Planck Encyclopedia of Public International Law. 2010.

37. Sand P.H. International environmental law after Rio. European Journal of International Law. 1993. Vol. 4 (1). P. 377.

38. Sand P.H. The evolution of international environmental law. – D. Bodansky, J. Brunnée, E. Hey (eds.). – The Oxford handbook of international environmental law. Oxford University Press. 2008. P. 29-43.

39. Sand P.H. (ed.). The history and origin of international environmental law. Elgar. 2015.

40. Sands P. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. – Review of European Comparative and International Environmental Law. 1992. Vol. 1 (1). P. 270.

41. Sands P. International law in the field of sustainable development. – British Yearbook of International Law. 1994. Vol. 65 (1). P. 303.

42. Sands P. Climate change and the rule of law: Adjudicating the future in international law. – The pursuit of a brave new world in international law. Brill Nijhoff. 2017. P. 114-134.

43. Sands P.J. Environment, community and international law. – The Harvard International Law Journal. 1989. Vol. 30 (1). P. 393.

44. Schrijver N.J. The evolution of sustainable development in international law: Inception, meaning and status. Brill. 2009.

45. Silva G.E. do N. International environmental law. Thex Editora. 2002.

46. Viñuales J. Sustainable development. – L. Rajamani, J. Peel (eds.). The Oxford handbook of international environmental law. Oxford University Press. 2021. P. 285-301.

47. Weiss E.B. The evolution of international environmental law. – Japanese Yearbook of International Law. 2011. Vol. 54. P. 27.

48. Wiersema A. The new international law–makers? Conferences of the Parties to multilateral environmental agreements. – Michigan Journal of International Law. 2009. Vol. 31. P. 231-287.

49. Yamin F., Depledge J. The international climate change regime: A guide to rules, institutions and procedures. Cambridge University Press. 2004.