LAHORE - A three-day ‘First World Congress on Environmental Law’ held in Rio, Brazil, concluded, said a press release issued yesterday.

It said Senior puisne Judge of the Lahore High Court Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah also participated in it. The congress theme was Environmental Rule of Law, Justice and Planetary Sustainability with the objective to provide a global forum to advance the role of law in developing and implementing solutions that will ensure ecological sustainability.

This Congress was the first global gathering of its kind, organised under the auspices of IUCN in cooperation with UNEP, and in close partnership with the Brazilian Association of Judges (AMB), the Supreme Court of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the Brazilian National Judicial School, the Association of Judges of the State of Rio de Janeiro (AMAERJ), the International Association of Judges (IAJ), the Organization of American States (OAS), the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the Global Legislators Organisations for a Balanced Environment (GLOBE), the International Network for Environmental Compliance and Enforcement (INECE), the European Union Forum of Judges for the Environment, the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), and FGV Projetos – Getúlio Vargas Foundation, as a knowledge partner.

The congress involved a broad variety of legal institutions and actors, including judges, legislators, prosecutors, government agencies, intergovernmental organizations, multilateral financial institutions, public interest organizations, and the private sector, as well as scientific and policy experts from related disciplines.

Over the course of three days, through plenary sessions and three series of workshops aligning with the sub-themes (planetary challenges, legal opportunities and priorities, and legal institutions and environmental law), the Congress went into depth regarding various trends and challenges in environmental law and their importance for conservation and environmental governance throughout the world.

Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, while sharing with the participants, gave detailed briefing regarding environmental legislation and litigation in Pakistan and told about the cases being heard in Green Benches.

The participants appreciated the proceedings on the case titled Asghar Laghari Vs Federation of Pakistan and declared it milestone for environmental protection in the region.