The UN Charter, adopted in 1945, makes no mention of the environment. In the 80 years since then, protection of the environment has become critical to humanity and the planet, and a core topic of the UN. However, the UN infrastructure has not kept up, and is insufficient to address environmental issues.
The Second UN Charter proposes in Chapter XII the creation of an Earth System Council as the fourth pillar of the UN, alongside peace and security, economic and social development, and human rights. This would bridge a critical gap in international environmental governance and remedy the significant fragmentation in the current system. The Council would provide strategic direction and coordinated action for the governance of the global commons and the Earth System.
In this article Governing the Planet: Why We Need an Earth System Council Now, Arthur Dahl describes the proposal for an Earth System Council and how it would work to provide better cooperative management of Earth's ecosystems.
