Ecocide: A Threat to Nepal and the World
- Rupa BasnetDetails
1 November 2026/१५ कात्तिक २०८३ (आइतबार, दिउँसो ३ बजे)
Research Seminar Series
Ecocide: A Threat to Nepal and the World
Rupa Basnet, Environmental Lawyer
Abstract
Environmental law encompasses mainly two broad concerns: environmental protection and environmental harm. In the context of environmental protection, it is primarily concerned with conservation of biodiversity, EIA, and protection from pollution. Whereas, in relation to environmental harm, it is mainly concerned with the prevention and regulation of harm to the environment and the public. Ecocide concerns serious environmental harm caused by human activities, including activities undertaken in the course of economic development. It is also associated with the negative externalities caused by human activities. Unless negative externalities are internalized, environmental costs may continue to be imposed on the environment and the public. This raises the question of whether particularly serious environmental destruction should be recognized as a crime against the environment. Hence, recognition of ecocide as a serious crime could serve as a deterrent against environmental harm before it occurs. We need to understand that crimes against the environment can have a significant adverse impact on populations, both directly and indirectly.
Ecocide generally refers to severe environmental destruction or damage, and its precise legal definition remains the subject of international debate. I will discuss several relevant cases: the Chure exploitation case, the Bagmati corridor case, the Godawari Marble case, etc., with particular reference to the decisions given by the judiciary.
About the Speaker
Rupa Basnet in an environmental lawyer and an ardent PIL Advocate. She works under the leadership of Senior Advocate Prakash Mani Sharma and has filed several writs in the Supreme Court of Nepal against development hazards. She was one of the applicant-litigators that challenged the construction of an airport in Nijgadh. She is currently the chairperson of Prakash Mani Sharma Academy for Public Interest Law, deputy coordinator of the Environment Law Committee of Nepal Bar Association and a member of the Environment Law Committee of Tribhuvan University where she teaches.