Influence on Climate Change: Crimea, Indigenous Peoples and International Crimes

The main purpose of the event is to discuss the direct and indirect ecological and economic impacts on climate change, which have already been caused or may occur due to the occupation of Crimea, the full-scale aggression of Russia against Ukraine and the corresponding active military operations on the mainland of Ukraine, the Sea of Azov and the northern part of the Black Sea, as well as determining the degree of negative impact on the traditional way of life of indigenous peoples living in this region.

During the side-event experts will speak about the most acute risks in the area of climate change associated with the occupation of Crimea, full-scale aggression of Russia against Ukraine and corresponding active military actions, as well as the process of recovery of liberated Ukrainian’s territory, determining the degree of impact of these risks on the fundamental rights of indigenous peoples.

The main vectors are the exchange of opinions and the coordination of subsequent activities regarding the assessment of relevant negative climate changes, the analysis of the negative impact of Russian aggression in Ukraine on the environment of Crimea and the re-lated rights of indigenous peoples.

The corresponding negative impacts include atmospheric pollution due to mass extensive emissions of combustion products, the destruction of thousands of square kilometers of forests and plantations, as well as natural soils in the combat zone close to Crimea, the intervention of the occupants in the activities of land reclamation systems and natural watercourses in Southern Ukraine, undermining of the Kakhovka HPP and consequences of the biggest technogenic disaster of the last decade. Also, the negative impact includes the destruction of the ecosystems of the Black and Azov seas, important for oxygen exchange, due to their pollution by oil products and chemi-als from sea vessels and their missile ammunition, as well as changes in ecosystems caused by the mass death of mammals and fish due to noise and explosive pollution during maritime activities.

Special risks arise in this zone regarding potential changes in the hydrogen sulphide layer located in the deep-water part of the Black Sea, and the corresponding emissions, in particular due to explosive processes. Such changes also include an indirect impact through Russian attacks on Ukrainian nuclear power facilities, such as the Zaporizhzhia NPP, and on Ukrainian green energy facili-ties in the occupied territories and war zones. Potential risks include nuclear incidents caused by Russian military and terrorist activities and the detonation of underwater gas pipelines in the Black Sea by the occupants.

The main negative consequences for the indigenous peoples of Crimea, including the Crimean Tatars, are the destruction or damage due to climatic changes of natural ecosystems and areas of traditional farming, namely: the desertification of the Western Crimea, the de-forestation of the Crimean mountains, the destruction and disappearance of marine coastal aquatic complexes, the collapse of biosystems of the Azov seas, soil salinization of the Central and Eastern Crimea. The ecological risks of the Russian invasion of Ukraine have already been identified in some resolutions of the UN General Assembly, OSCE and Council of Europe bodies since 2015, but these actions and the corresponding expert work of UN officials have not yet re-flected climate issues. In addition, the mentioned issue was not raised in terms of the protection of the rights of indigenous peoples, with regard to sustainable development.

Experts will express their thoughts on the term of ecocide and shared their research and advocation experience in this field. The proposed event will allow the discussion and assessment by intergovernmental bodies, governments of developing countries, nature protection and human rights organizations, and institutions of the world’s indigenous peoples of the forms of direct and indirect negative environmental and economic impact of Russian aggression in the field of climate change and related rights of the indigenous peoples.

During the event will be describe the efforts both Ukrainian and international prosecuted institutions in the investigation of environmental crimes. The result should be the development of plans to counteract the corresponding nega-tive processes, at the level of international organizations, governments and non-governmental environmental protection structures, organizations of the indigenous peoples of the world, the inclusion of relevant issues in international documents of legal and political dimensions, in particular, in the dimension of increasing sanctions pressure and international recognition of the Russian regime as a terrorist.

The target audience of the event is representatives of international organizations, including specialized UN agencies in the fields of ecology, indigenous peoples, human rights, humanitarian issues, transport, economy, etc., relevant officials of national, regional and municipal authorities, scientists and representatives of civil society, including environmental and human rights organizations, indigenous peoples of the world and their self-governing bodies and institutions.

• Eskender Bariiev, Chairman of the Board of the Crimean Tatar Resource Center, Head of the Department of Legal and Foreign Affairs of Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People
• Svitlana Boychenko, Doctor of Geographical Sciences, Leading Researcher at S. I. Subbotin Institute of Geophys-ics of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Professor of the Department of Ecolo-gy of the National University Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, Member of the Expert Council of Crimean Tatar Resource Center for Environmental Protection and Sustainable Development of Crimea
• Borys Babin, Doctor of law, professor, expert of the Crimean Tatar Resource Center, professor of the de-partment of international law of the National Aviation University, professor of the depart-ment of public and legal disciplines of Mariupol State University, expert of the Association of Reintegration of Crimea
• Yevhen Khlobystov,Doctor of Economic Sciences, Professor of the Department of Ecology of the National Uni-versity Kyiv Mohyla Academy, Academician of the Academy of Economic Sciences of Ukraine, Member of the Expert Council of Crimean Tatar Resource Center for Environmen-tal Protection and Sustainable Development of Crimea
• Liudmyla Korotkykh, Lawyer, Manager of the Crimean Tatar Resource Center