From Law School to Climate Action: Ghana Launches the Young Lawyers Voice on Climate Change Foundation
Law students, young lawyers, environmental advocates and legal professionals have officially launched the Ghana Chapter of the Young Lawyers Voice on Climate Change Foundation, a Pan‑African initiative dedicated to placing law and legal advocacy at the centre of Africa’s response to climate change.
The virtual launch, held on Saturday, August 15, brought together law students, practitioners, environmental advocates, traditional leaders and representatives of the Foundation’s international leadership in Kenya. The event marked a significant step in mobilising Ghana’s legal community around climate justice.
Held under the theme “Rising Advocates, Raising Climate Leaders; Justice for the Planet,” speakers urged young lawyers and students to move beyond discussions and use their legal training to demand accountability, protect vulnerable communities and influence environmental policy.
The international President of the Foundation, Tobias Omeri, joined the event and expressed strong support for the establishment of the Ghana chapter. The Foundation, headquartered in Kenya, operates across several African countries and aims to build a continent‑wide network of young legal professionals committed to climate justice.
Climate Change Is a Question of Justice
Delivering the keynote address, Lawyer Humphrey Nii Narku Omaboe of Omaboe & Omaboe PRUC stressed that environmental destruction must be understood not only as an ecological problem but as an issue of rights, responsibility, fairness and remedy.
“When a river is poisoned, a forest is destroyed or a coastline is lost, we often describe the event as an environmental problem. But we must ask a deeper question: has someone been wronged?” he said.
He noted that communities deprived of clean water, farmers whose livelihoods are destroyed, families displaced by flooding and children exposed to polluted air experience harms that go far beyond environmental degradation — raising fundamental questions of justice.
Mr. Omaboe emphasised that environmental justice cannot be achieved through confrontation, but through knowledge, legal advocacy, accountability and effective remedies. He identified illegal mining, coastal erosion, deforestation, biodiversity loss, plastic pollution, poor waste management, air pollution and flooding as major environmental challenges confronting Ghana.
However, he argued that Ghana’s problem is not the absence of environmental laws.
“Justice for the planet requires us to close the distance between environmental law on paper and environmental protection in practice,” he said.
He highlighted Ghana’s constitutional and statutory environmental framework, including the Environmental Protection Act, 2025 (Act 1124), environmental assessment requirements, water‑resource regulation, mining law, biodiversity protection, waste management and access to environmental information — all areas where lawyers can drive accountability.
A Call for Action, Not Another Talk Shop
The Guest of Honour, Nana Tepa Hemaa, Queen Mother of Tepa, welcomed the establishment of the Ghana chapter, describing it as timely given the escalating effects of climate change across Africa.
She noted that climate change is already affecting weather patterns, food and water systems, livelihoods and entire communities. She stressed that climate change is not only an environmental challenge but also a justice issue.
Nana Tepa Hemaa commended young lawyers for taking interest in climate issues and emphasised the legal profession’s role in protecting vulnerable communities, holding institutions accountable and ensuring that development does not compromise future generations.
She praised the Pan‑African nature of the initiative, arguing that Africa’s interconnected climate challenges require cross‑border collaboration, knowledge‑sharing and solutions rooted in African realities.
But she cautioned the new chapter against becoming another organisation focused only on meetings and speeches.
“Let it be a platform for research, advocacy, community engagement, policy influence and meaningful action,” she urged.
She encouraged young lawyers to bring climate considerations into courtrooms, boardrooms, classrooms and policy spaces, using the law as an instrument of justice, equity and transformation.
Lawyers Urged to Make Climate Accountability Practical
Mr. Omaboe outlined several practical areas where young lawyers can contribute, including:
- environmental legal aid
- community empowerment
- research and policy advocacy
- climate‑law education
- environmental due diligence
- ESG reporting
- strategic public‑interest litigation
He said lawyers can help communities understand environmental impact assessments, mining concessions, compensation proposals, carbon agreements and regulatory decisions. They can also support access‑to‑information requests and administrative complaints.
He highlighted the growing importance of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) reporting, arguing that lawyers must not leave sustainability reporting solely to accountants and auditors. ESG reporting increasingly involves environmental law, company law, directors’ duties, human rights, land law, regulatory compliance and disclosure liability.
He urged lawyers to scrutinise corporate environmental claims and guard against greenwashing, especially when companies describe themselves as “carbon neutral”, “environmentally friendly” or “sustainable” without evidence.
He proposed that the Ghana chapter develop programmes such as environmental legal aid, community empowerment, research, policy advocacy, climate‑law education, governance scorecards, youth legal clinics and carefully selected public‑interest cases.
Legal Community Lends Support
The launch received goodwill from prominent members of Ghana’s legal and environmental advocacy community.
Lawyer Benjamin Ebo Dantse of Bentsi‑Enchill, Letsa & Ankomah delivered a goodwill message, while Sampson Osei‑Tutu Aggrey of the Green Africa Youth Organization (GAYO) also joined the event, underscoring the importance of collaboration between the legal community and youth‑led climate organisations.
Their participation reflected the Foundation’s commitment to building bridges between law, environmental advocacy, policy and community action.
“The Planet Cannot Enter a Courtroom”
The event closed with a powerful reminder that climate justice requires collaboration across disciplines.
Mr. Omaboe noted that lawyers must work alongside scientists, accountants, auditors, economists, journalists, traditional authorities, community leaders, regulators and policymakers because environmental challenges cannot be solved by one profession alone.
He concluded with a striking message:
“The planet may not be able to enter a courtroom, attend a board meeting, examine an annual report or challenge a misleading disclosure. People must do so on its behalf.”
For the newly launched Ghana chapter, the challenge now is to transform the momentum of the launch into sustained advocacy, research, community engagement and legal action.
As Nana Tepa Hemaa put it, the future will judge this generation not only by what it knew about the climate crisis, but by what it chose to do about it.