On March 29th, 2022, the Center for Legal Research and Analysis organized the Regional Conference: Constitutional Courts – Guardians of the Environment. The conference was organized within the “Project for Good Management of the Environment” supported by the British Embassy in Skopje.
At the conference, the retired Professor of Constitutional Law Mr. Škarić, the Minister of Environment and Spatial Planning Mr. Nuredini, the President of the Constitutional Court Judge Katsarska, the Ambassador of Great Britain in Skopje, H.E. Rachel Galloway, the President of the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina Judge Tadić, the President of the Constitutional Court of Slovenia Judge Aceto, the President of the Constitutional Court of Bulgaria Judge Panova, the Judge of the Constitutional Court of Albania Judge Bjejtja and the Program Manager at CLRA, Nikola Jovanovski I gave own review of the possibilities for increasing the role of the Constitutional Court in the protection of environmental law. The conference was moderated by Acad. Vlado Kambovski.
The President of the Constitutional Court of the RNM, Judge Dobrila Katsarska, on this occasion, emphasized the two roles that the Constitutional Court of the RSM has: 1. interpreter of the constitutional norms through which their content is determined and 2. concrete application of the constitutional norms in the exercise of the Court’s powers, especially in the area of the protection of constitutional freedoms and rights in both of its forms. In the end, Judge Katsarska emphasized “that the protection of the environment is one of the top priorities of every modern society. It aims to enable the survival and work of individuals in healthy conditions for the living and development of future generations. Therefore, the societies in their highest legal acts – the constitutions, proclaim it as a value that should be guaranteed, protected, and sanctioned through the legal order if it is acted contrary to what is prescribed. At the same time, it is established as the right of each individual, but also his obligation to protect it.”
In his presentation, Minister Nuredeni said that although our country has recognized the right to a healthy environment in the Constitution, it is necessary for all actors, including the courts, to participate with their contribution if we want to preserve the environment.
The Ambassador of Great Britain to RNM, H.E. Rachel Galloway said in her opening address that there is an urgent need to change the way we behave as a nation to deal with environmental challenges…. “we in the UK are still learning how to improve our laws and we believe that people will change their way of behaving. We see laws as providing a framework, and the justice system should establish the standards of what is good and what is bad and build practices that will ensure the protection of the natural environment for future generations. These are basic life rights and the judiciary should protect them.”
In the second part, the presidents of four constitutional courts from the region presented their experiences and attitudes regarding environmental protection. With their presentations, they introduced us to how the right to a healthy environment is regulated in their Constitutions, and the agencies for its protection and promotion. In addition, more significant court cases with good practices for overcoming challenges in environmental protection were also briefly presented.
At the end of this conference, all those present agreed and said that a common commitment is needed to ensure conditions for a healthy environment because the problem of nature degradation is a global and not a local problem.
