ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE THROUGH INDIGENOUS OCEAN GOVERNANCE AND CUSTOMARY MARINE TENURE

Abstract

Environmental justice has become one of the defining principles of modern international environmental law, traditionally focusing on the equitable distribution of environmental benefits and burdens, public participation in environmental decision-making, and protection against environmental discrimination. Although these objectives remain fundamental, they are no longer sufficient to address contemporary environmental challenges, including climate change, marine biodiversity loss, ocean warming, sea-level rise, marine pollution, and the increasing exploitation of marine resources, all of which expose the limitations of existing environmental justice jurisprudence, particularly its inadequate recognition of Indigenous systems of environmental governance. Adopting a doctrinal legal research methodology, this article critically analyses primary and secondary sources of international environmental law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), and relevant academic literature. It argues that environmental justice should be reconstructed through the legal integration of Indigenous Ocean Governance and Customary Marine Tenure, recognising them not merely as expressions of Indigenous culture or rights but as sophisticated systems of environmental governance that advance biodiversity conservation, ecological stewardship, climate resilience, sustainable ocean governance, and intergenerational justice. The article introduces Integrated Ocean Justice Theory as an original jurisprudential framework that reconceptualises environmental justice by extending its scope beyond the equitable distribution of environmental benefits and burdens to include the recognition of Indigenous legal authority, ecological stewardship, community participation, and the long-term protection of marine ecosystems. It further demonstrates that integrating statutory institutions with Indigenous legal systems strengthens the legitimacy and effectiveness of environmental governance while promoting legal pluralism and more inclusive approaches to ocean governance. The article concludes that this integrated framework provides a new jurisprudential foundation for advancing environmental justice and the future development of international environmental law in the Ocean Century.