Refia Kaya | Hacettepe University (original) (raw)
Published Papers by Refia Kaya
Leuven Blog for Public Law, 2022
Questions concerning the climate and sustainability continue to stir up strong responses in socie... more Questions concerning the climate and sustainability continue to stir up strong responses in society and are becoming ever more prominent on the agenda. These topics also raise important legal questions. A special blog series puts these important and wide-ranging issues in the spotlight. In this post Dr. Refia Kaya discusses Recommendation No. 2211 ‘Anchoring the right to a healthy environment’ of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and its Article recognizing environmental discrimination. What does this entail and what added value does the Recommendation bring?
https://www.leuvenpubliclaw.com/the-recommendation-to-recognize-environmental-discrimination/
TYB AKADEMİ, 2022
İnsanlık, gelecek nesillerin refahı ve sağlığı açısından kaygılandırıcı olaylarla yüzleşmektedir.... more İnsanlık, gelecek nesillerin refahı ve sağlığı açısından kaygılandırıcı olaylarla yüzleşmektedir. Dolayısıyla birçok politikada nesiller arası adalet prensibinin daha fazla ciddiye alındığı görülmektedir. Bu bağlamda makale, nesiller arası adalet prensibine uygun bir anayasanın içeriğinin nasıl olması gerektiğine ilişkin temel unsurları bir araya getirerek tartışmaya açmaktadır. Görüşleri somutlaştırmak adına Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Anayasası’nın ilgili maddeleri üzerinden düzenlemeler
önerilmektedir. Makale, literatürü ve uluslararası metinleri şekillendiren nesiller arasında ekonomik kaynak paylaşımının nasıl yapılması gerektiği kaygısının yanında anayasa ekseninde daha mühim görülebilecek genç ve gelecek nesillerin özerkliğinin ve onların önceliklerinin temsilinin nasıl olması gerektiği kaygısı üzerinden anayasa incelemesi yapmayı amaçlamıştır. Bu amaç çerçevesinde anayasanın başlangıç kısmının mahiyeti, değiştirilemez maddeler bağlamında anayasanın katılığı ve adil bir temsil için mühim olan seçme ve seçilme hakkı ele alınmıştır.
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Humanity is in a state that raises serious concerns about the welfare and health of young and future generations. Hence, more and more policies now take the principle of intergenerational justice seriously. This article discusses what a constitution respecting the principle of intergenerational justice would entail. To make the arguments concrete enough, the article goes through the current Turkish Constitution to suggest amendments and to show why these amendments would be necessary. Moreover, this article does not only aim to elaborate on how to share resources among generations, which dominate academic literature and international documents. But also to address the issue of autonomy of young and
future generations and the representation of their priorities, which can be is more directly relevant to constitutional law. To this aim, the preamble of the constitution, constitutional rigidity, and political representation of young and future generations are addressed in addition to sustainable development principle.
Ankara Review of European Studies, 2021
Environmental problems continue becoming more apparent in Europe. Many people are exposed to envi... more Environmental problems continue becoming more apparent in Europe. Many people are exposed to environmental harms such as heatwaves, chemicals, polluted air, and contaminated water. This article aims to discuss whether it is feasible to frame environmental exposures as discrimination issues and if it is feasible whether European discrimination law can be/is used to challenge environmental exposures. For this, both non-legal and legal sources are analysed. The article identifies the possible internal limitations of discrimination law that have been preventing its application in the domain of environment so far. It is argued that discrimination law has a significant potential despite the limited number of legal cases that link environmental exposures and discrimination in Europe.
Law and Justice Review, 2021
This paper discusses the fairness of applying the "Common but Differentiated Responsibilities" pr... more This paper discusses the fairness of applying the "Common but Differentiated Responsibilities" principle that is adapted in International Biodiversity Law to the "Conservation and Sustainable Use of Biodiversity" through the lens of social justice expounded by Rawls and other respective scholars. After defining the concepts that are used through the paper and subsequently analyzing the international law and related literature on the differentiated approach to conservation and sustainable use, it is argued that the global approach that distinguishes the responsibilities of the states with regard to their economic level is less likely to meet the demands of social justice both for current and future generations of developing countries. The holistic approach, which is adopted for the evaluation of this argument in favor of an egalitarian approach to conservation and sustainable use, indicates the close linkages between the conservation of biodiversity and environmental justice issues, economic concerns in the long term, socioeconomic inequalities, and traditional communities-especially in biological resourcerich developing countries. Certain cases are introduced in order to solidify that the prioritization of socioeconomic development over biodiversity conservation in developing economies is not effective in addressing the demands of the least advantaged communities of current and future generations-and therefore less likely to comply with the demands of social justice.
Canadian Journal of Law and Jurisprudence- Article, 2020
Ensuring equal liberties requires neutral, i.e. impartial, settings where nobody would be deprive... more Ensuring equal liberties requires neutral, i.e. impartial, settings where nobody would be deprived of freedom because of their personal characteristics. Religion and disability appear as characteristics which may clash with the existing social and physical environments. Therefore, the necessity of adjusting the existing environment, i.e., reasonable accommodation, is mostly discussed in reference to religion and disability. I aim to discuss reasonable accommodation from a different perspective and ask whether reasonable accommodation should be extended to age issues. I propose that age can lead to differences in conscience or culture like religion. Age can also be a source of dis/ability so it can be compared to accustomed disabilities. Eventually, age may also clash with the existing social and physical environments. I further propose that age is not only similar to but also different from religion and disability when it comes to reasonable accommodation. Therefore, I defend, reasonable accommodation should be extended to age in a special way. The next question then is how age could be accommodated under the European Union (EU) law, especially when we consider that reasonable accommodation law does not have a wide scope in the EU, unlike in Canada.
The Lawyer Quarterly, 2019
Environmental degradation is not distributed equally among various groups of people. There is a v... more Environmental degradation is not distributed equally among various groups of people. There is a vast amount of social studies, scientific reports and current legal cases which reveal the disproportionate burden placed on certain populations by the pollution of the natural environment. This paper is based on the idea that equal wellbeing of each individual is better protected when their status as collectivities is taken into account with regard to environmental issues. In this respect, the paper attempts to explore how the principle of equality and non-discrimination, Article 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights, helps defending rights of collectivities through an individual rights-based legal institution, namely European Court of Human Rights.
See: https://tlq.ilaw.cas.cz/index.php/tlq/article/view/368
Review of European, Comparative & International Environmental Law, 2019
Discussions on equality between age groups and the practice of anti‐age discrimination law often ... more Discussions on equality between age groups and the practice of anti‐age discrimination law often tend to focus on the rights of the elderly on the labour market. This article is motivated by the current climate change cases, which emphasize broader age inequalities. It aims to highlight the unexplored potential of anti‐age discrimination law. Moreover, it explores the possible added value of this law when other legal ways to defend environmental rights are considered. Anti‐age discrimination law could thus offer a meaningful and effective ground to address age‐related environmental vulnerabilities.
The Conversation, 2018
La cour d’appel de La Haye a rendu le 9 octobre un arrêt historique en matière de justice climati... more La cour d’appel de La Haye a rendu le 9 octobre un arrêt historique en matière de justice climatique. Confirmant le jugement en première instance du 24 juin 2015, cette nouvelle décision confirme l’injonction aux autorités hollandaises de réduire d’au moins 25 % leurs émissions à l’horizon de 2020.
Booklets by Refia Kaya
886 kişi ve Urgenda Vakfı tarafından Hollanda Hükümeti’ne açılarak başarı kazanan, iklim değişikl... more 886 kişi ve Urgenda Vakfı tarafından Hollanda Hükümeti’ne açılarak başarı kazanan, iklim değişikliğine karşı devletin sorumluluğu hakkında tarihi bir karar. Kitapta kararın değerlendirmesi ve Türkçe çevirisi bulunmaktadır.
Axel Gosseries, Refia Kadayıfçı (Kaya), Serde Atalay.
Geçtiğimiz Temmuz ayında (2017) Avrupa İnsan Hakları Mahkemesi, Tiflis’te bulunan “Tboelectrocent... more Geçtiğimiz Temmuz ayında (2017) Avrupa İnsan Hakları Mahkemesi, Tiflis’te bulunan “Tboelectrocentrali” termik santraline ilişkin Jugheli ve Diğerleri-Gürcistan davası hakkında kararını açıkladı. Ivan Jugheli ve iki diğer başvurucu, evlerine yakın konumlanmış Tboelectrocentrali santralinden kaynaklı hava, ses kirliliğine ve elektromanyetik kirliliğe karşı devletin kendilerini koruma ödevini yerine getirmediğini, Avrupa İnsan Hakları Sözleşmesi’nin “Özel Hayatın ve Aile Hayatının Korunması” hakkındaki 8. Maddesini ihlal ettiğini iddia etti. Mahkeme, başvurucuların hava kirliliğine ilişkin iddialarını haklı bularak çevresel zarar davalarında başvurulan Sözleşme’nin 8. Maddesinin ihlal edildiğine hüküm verdi. Mahkeme, bu kararıyla, 8. Maddenin çevre davalarındaki uygulamasına yönelik içtihadına “dönüm noktası” kabul edilebilecek bir yenilik getirmemiş olsa da ilk defa bir termik santralden kaynaklı zarar iddiasında 8. Maddenin ihlaline hükmetti. Bu davayı önemli kılan da bu hüküm.
Refia Kadayıfçı, Hülya Yıldırım, Fevzi Özlüer
Master Thesis by Refia Kaya
Master Thesis in Law, 2016
The thesis’s main question is: Should developing countries prioritize economic development of the... more The thesis’s main question is: Should developing countries prioritize economic development of their current generation over conservation of their biodiversity for future generations? I address this question both from a legal and a philosophical perspective. One approach to this problem is what I have call the “differentiated responsibilities approach to sustainable use”, which is derived from the principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities” principle that Convention on Biological Diversity adopts. This approach implies that developing countries should prioritize economic development over conservation of biodiversity whenever they conflict. In the thesis I criticize it and argue in favor of an egalitarian approach instead. According to that approach, the right to development and fulfilling responsibilities to future generations should be equally valued, regardless of the economic situation of the country. I introduce three cases to support and illustrate my argument.
PhD Thesis by Refia Kaya
Equality is a profound, multi-dimensional, and complex value. It may be regarded as an end in its... more Equality is a profound, multi-dimensional, and complex value. It may be regarded as an end in itself or it may be treated as a means to a higher end. All in all, equality is, and has to be, discussed along with its alternative connotations and purposes. Discrimination law literature does exactly that. In this research, I demonstrate that discrimination law invokes three concepts of equality, namely, equal treatment, equal dignity, and equality of opportunity, each of which also sets a purpose for discrimination law, and comes with alternative philosophical interpretations. The main question in this research is whether the European Courts rely on any particular philosophical interpretation(s) of the three concepts of equality; and, if they do, what are the legal contexts and consequences of their adoption of one interpretation or another? Each of the first three chapters of this research is designed in a threefold structure: The first portion describes the alternative interpretations of the respective concept of equality. It serves as a building block for the second portion, dedicated to the analysis of positive law, both at the statutory and case law levels, in Europe. The positive law portion reveals the philosophical interpretations of equality that are present in law. Thus, the second portions collectively constitute the heart of this research in law. The third portion emphasises the main lessons derived from the comparison of philosophical vis-à-vis legal references to equality and suggests how the two disciplines can continue to inspire each other. The fourth chapter tests the arguments developed in earlier chapters by critically examining existing and potential cases of environmental discrimination.
Papers by Refia Kaya
Hungarian journal of legal studies, Dec 13, 2023
The Lawyer Quarterly, 2020
Environmental degradation is not distributed equally among various groups of people. There is a v... more Environmental degradation is not distributed equally among various groups of people. There is a vast amount of social studies, scientific reports and current legal cases which reveal the disproportionate burden placed on certain populations by the pollution of the natural environment. This paper is based on the idea that equal wellbeing of each individual is better protected when their status as collectivities is taken into account with regard to environmental issues. In this respect, the paper attempts to explore how the principle of equality and non-discrimination, Article 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights, helps defending rights of collectivities through an individual rights-based legal institution, namely European Court of Human Rights.
Consider the following example: X was dismissed from her job as a childminder because of being ob... more Consider the following example: X was dismissed from her job as a childminder because of being obese. In the case, it is evident that X was discriminated. Yet, the statutory law regulates an exhaustive list of discrimination grounds, i.e. limits the characteristics that the law protects. In this regard, somebody can only claim to be discriminated on the grounds of gender, disability, religion, sexual orientation, and age. What should the Court do?
Ankara Avrupa Calismalari Dergisi
Canadian Journal of Law & Jurisprudence
Ensuring equal liberties requires neutral, i.e. impartial, settings where nobody would be deprive... more Ensuring equal liberties requires neutral, i.e. impartial, settings where nobody would be deprived of freedom because of their personal characteristics. Religion and disability appear as characteristics which may clash with the existing social and physical environments. Therefore, the necessity of adjusting the existing environment, i.e., reasonable accommodation, is mostly discussed in reference to religion and disability. I aim to discuss reasonable accommodation from a different perspective and ask whether reasonable accommodation should be extended to age issues. I propose that age can lead to differences in conscience or culture like religion. Age can also be a source of dis/ability so it can be compared to accustomed disabilities. Eventually, age may also clash with the existing social and physical environments. I further propose that age is not only similar to but also different from religion and disability when it comes to reasonable accommodation. Therefore, I defend, reaso...
Review of European, Comparative & International Environmental Law
Discussions on equality between age groups and the practice of anti‐age discrimination law often ... more Discussions on equality between age groups and the practice of anti‐age discrimination law often tend to focus on the rights of the elderly on the labour market. This article is motivated by the current climate change cases, which emphasize broader age inequalities. It aims to highlight the unexplored potential of anti‐age discrimination law. Moreover, it explores the possible added value of this law when other legal ways to defend environmental rights are considered. Anti‐age discrimination law could thus offer a meaningful and effective ground to address age‐related environmental vulnerabilities.
La cour d’appel de La Haye a rendu le 9 octobre un arrêt historique en matière de justice climati... more La cour d’appel de La Haye a rendu le 9 octobre un arrêt historique en matière de justice climatique. Confirmant le jugement en première instance du 24 juin 2015, cette nouvelle décision confirme l’injonction aux autorités hollandaises de réduire d’au moins 25 % leurs émissions à l’horizon de 2020.
Leuven Blog for Public Law, 2022
Questions concerning the climate and sustainability continue to stir up strong responses in socie... more Questions concerning the climate and sustainability continue to stir up strong responses in society and are becoming ever more prominent on the agenda. These topics also raise important legal questions. A special blog series puts these important and wide-ranging issues in the spotlight. In this post Dr. Refia Kaya discusses Recommendation No. 2211 ‘Anchoring the right to a healthy environment’ of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and its Article recognizing environmental discrimination. What does this entail and what added value does the Recommendation bring?
https://www.leuvenpubliclaw.com/the-recommendation-to-recognize-environmental-discrimination/
TYB AKADEMİ, 2022
İnsanlık, gelecek nesillerin refahı ve sağlığı açısından kaygılandırıcı olaylarla yüzleşmektedir.... more İnsanlık, gelecek nesillerin refahı ve sağlığı açısından kaygılandırıcı olaylarla yüzleşmektedir. Dolayısıyla birçok politikada nesiller arası adalet prensibinin daha fazla ciddiye alındığı görülmektedir. Bu bağlamda makale, nesiller arası adalet prensibine uygun bir anayasanın içeriğinin nasıl olması gerektiğine ilişkin temel unsurları bir araya getirerek tartışmaya açmaktadır. Görüşleri somutlaştırmak adına Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Anayasası’nın ilgili maddeleri üzerinden düzenlemeler
önerilmektedir. Makale, literatürü ve uluslararası metinleri şekillendiren nesiller arasında ekonomik kaynak paylaşımının nasıl yapılması gerektiği kaygısının yanında anayasa ekseninde daha mühim görülebilecek genç ve gelecek nesillerin özerkliğinin ve onların önceliklerinin temsilinin nasıl olması gerektiği kaygısı üzerinden anayasa incelemesi yapmayı amaçlamıştır. Bu amaç çerçevesinde anayasanın başlangıç kısmının mahiyeti, değiştirilemez maddeler bağlamında anayasanın katılığı ve adil bir temsil için mühim olan seçme ve seçilme hakkı ele alınmıştır.
---
Humanity is in a state that raises serious concerns about the welfare and health of young and future generations. Hence, more and more policies now take the principle of intergenerational justice seriously. This article discusses what a constitution respecting the principle of intergenerational justice would entail. To make the arguments concrete enough, the article goes through the current Turkish Constitution to suggest amendments and to show why these amendments would be necessary. Moreover, this article does not only aim to elaborate on how to share resources among generations, which dominate academic literature and international documents. But also to address the issue of autonomy of young and
future generations and the representation of their priorities, which can be is more directly relevant to constitutional law. To this aim, the preamble of the constitution, constitutional rigidity, and political representation of young and future generations are addressed in addition to sustainable development principle.
Ankara Review of European Studies, 2021
Environmental problems continue becoming more apparent in Europe. Many people are exposed to envi... more Environmental problems continue becoming more apparent in Europe. Many people are exposed to environmental harms such as heatwaves, chemicals, polluted air, and contaminated water. This article aims to discuss whether it is feasible to frame environmental exposures as discrimination issues and if it is feasible whether European discrimination law can be/is used to challenge environmental exposures. For this, both non-legal and legal sources are analysed. The article identifies the possible internal limitations of discrimination law that have been preventing its application in the domain of environment so far. It is argued that discrimination law has a significant potential despite the limited number of legal cases that link environmental exposures and discrimination in Europe.
Law and Justice Review, 2021
This paper discusses the fairness of applying the "Common but Differentiated Responsibilities" pr... more This paper discusses the fairness of applying the "Common but Differentiated Responsibilities" principle that is adapted in International Biodiversity Law to the "Conservation and Sustainable Use of Biodiversity" through the lens of social justice expounded by Rawls and other respective scholars. After defining the concepts that are used through the paper and subsequently analyzing the international law and related literature on the differentiated approach to conservation and sustainable use, it is argued that the global approach that distinguishes the responsibilities of the states with regard to their economic level is less likely to meet the demands of social justice both for current and future generations of developing countries. The holistic approach, which is adopted for the evaluation of this argument in favor of an egalitarian approach to conservation and sustainable use, indicates the close linkages between the conservation of biodiversity and environmental justice issues, economic concerns in the long term, socioeconomic inequalities, and traditional communities-especially in biological resourcerich developing countries. Certain cases are introduced in order to solidify that the prioritization of socioeconomic development over biodiversity conservation in developing economies is not effective in addressing the demands of the least advantaged communities of current and future generations-and therefore less likely to comply with the demands of social justice.
Canadian Journal of Law and Jurisprudence- Article, 2020
Ensuring equal liberties requires neutral, i.e. impartial, settings where nobody would be deprive... more Ensuring equal liberties requires neutral, i.e. impartial, settings where nobody would be deprived of freedom because of their personal characteristics. Religion and disability appear as characteristics which may clash with the existing social and physical environments. Therefore, the necessity of adjusting the existing environment, i.e., reasonable accommodation, is mostly discussed in reference to religion and disability. I aim to discuss reasonable accommodation from a different perspective and ask whether reasonable accommodation should be extended to age issues. I propose that age can lead to differences in conscience or culture like religion. Age can also be a source of dis/ability so it can be compared to accustomed disabilities. Eventually, age may also clash with the existing social and physical environments. I further propose that age is not only similar to but also different from religion and disability when it comes to reasonable accommodation. Therefore, I defend, reasonable accommodation should be extended to age in a special way. The next question then is how age could be accommodated under the European Union (EU) law, especially when we consider that reasonable accommodation law does not have a wide scope in the EU, unlike in Canada.
The Lawyer Quarterly, 2019
Environmental degradation is not distributed equally among various groups of people. There is a v... more Environmental degradation is not distributed equally among various groups of people. There is a vast amount of social studies, scientific reports and current legal cases which reveal the disproportionate burden placed on certain populations by the pollution of the natural environment. This paper is based on the idea that equal wellbeing of each individual is better protected when their status as collectivities is taken into account with regard to environmental issues. In this respect, the paper attempts to explore how the principle of equality and non-discrimination, Article 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights, helps defending rights of collectivities through an individual rights-based legal institution, namely European Court of Human Rights.
See: https://tlq.ilaw.cas.cz/index.php/tlq/article/view/368
Review of European, Comparative & International Environmental Law, 2019
Discussions on equality between age groups and the practice of anti‐age discrimination law often ... more Discussions on equality between age groups and the practice of anti‐age discrimination law often tend to focus on the rights of the elderly on the labour market. This article is motivated by the current climate change cases, which emphasize broader age inequalities. It aims to highlight the unexplored potential of anti‐age discrimination law. Moreover, it explores the possible added value of this law when other legal ways to defend environmental rights are considered. Anti‐age discrimination law could thus offer a meaningful and effective ground to address age‐related environmental vulnerabilities.
The Conversation, 2018
La cour d’appel de La Haye a rendu le 9 octobre un arrêt historique en matière de justice climati... more La cour d’appel de La Haye a rendu le 9 octobre un arrêt historique en matière de justice climatique. Confirmant le jugement en première instance du 24 juin 2015, cette nouvelle décision confirme l’injonction aux autorités hollandaises de réduire d’au moins 25 % leurs émissions à l’horizon de 2020.
886 kişi ve Urgenda Vakfı tarafından Hollanda Hükümeti’ne açılarak başarı kazanan, iklim değişikl... more 886 kişi ve Urgenda Vakfı tarafından Hollanda Hükümeti’ne açılarak başarı kazanan, iklim değişikliğine karşı devletin sorumluluğu hakkında tarihi bir karar. Kitapta kararın değerlendirmesi ve Türkçe çevirisi bulunmaktadır.
Axel Gosseries, Refia Kadayıfçı (Kaya), Serde Atalay.
Geçtiğimiz Temmuz ayında (2017) Avrupa İnsan Hakları Mahkemesi, Tiflis’te bulunan “Tboelectrocent... more Geçtiğimiz Temmuz ayında (2017) Avrupa İnsan Hakları Mahkemesi, Tiflis’te bulunan “Tboelectrocentrali” termik santraline ilişkin Jugheli ve Diğerleri-Gürcistan davası hakkında kararını açıkladı. Ivan Jugheli ve iki diğer başvurucu, evlerine yakın konumlanmış Tboelectrocentrali santralinden kaynaklı hava, ses kirliliğine ve elektromanyetik kirliliğe karşı devletin kendilerini koruma ödevini yerine getirmediğini, Avrupa İnsan Hakları Sözleşmesi’nin “Özel Hayatın ve Aile Hayatının Korunması” hakkındaki 8. Maddesini ihlal ettiğini iddia etti. Mahkeme, başvurucuların hava kirliliğine ilişkin iddialarını haklı bularak çevresel zarar davalarında başvurulan Sözleşme’nin 8. Maddesinin ihlal edildiğine hüküm verdi. Mahkeme, bu kararıyla, 8. Maddenin çevre davalarındaki uygulamasına yönelik içtihadına “dönüm noktası” kabul edilebilecek bir yenilik getirmemiş olsa da ilk defa bir termik santralden kaynaklı zarar iddiasında 8. Maddenin ihlaline hükmetti. Bu davayı önemli kılan da bu hüküm.
Refia Kadayıfçı, Hülya Yıldırım, Fevzi Özlüer
Master Thesis in Law, 2016
The thesis’s main question is: Should developing countries prioritize economic development of the... more The thesis’s main question is: Should developing countries prioritize economic development of their current generation over conservation of their biodiversity for future generations? I address this question both from a legal and a philosophical perspective. One approach to this problem is what I have call the “differentiated responsibilities approach to sustainable use”, which is derived from the principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities” principle that Convention on Biological Diversity adopts. This approach implies that developing countries should prioritize economic development over conservation of biodiversity whenever they conflict. In the thesis I criticize it and argue in favor of an egalitarian approach instead. According to that approach, the right to development and fulfilling responsibilities to future generations should be equally valued, regardless of the economic situation of the country. I introduce three cases to support and illustrate my argument.
Equality is a profound, multi-dimensional, and complex value. It may be regarded as an end in its... more Equality is a profound, multi-dimensional, and complex value. It may be regarded as an end in itself or it may be treated as a means to a higher end. All in all, equality is, and has to be, discussed along with its alternative connotations and purposes. Discrimination law literature does exactly that. In this research, I demonstrate that discrimination law invokes three concepts of equality, namely, equal treatment, equal dignity, and equality of opportunity, each of which also sets a purpose for discrimination law, and comes with alternative philosophical interpretations. The main question in this research is whether the European Courts rely on any particular philosophical interpretation(s) of the three concepts of equality; and, if they do, what are the legal contexts and consequences of their adoption of one interpretation or another? Each of the first three chapters of this research is designed in a threefold structure: The first portion describes the alternative interpretations of the respective concept of equality. It serves as a building block for the second portion, dedicated to the analysis of positive law, both at the statutory and case law levels, in Europe. The positive law portion reveals the philosophical interpretations of equality that are present in law. Thus, the second portions collectively constitute the heart of this research in law. The third portion emphasises the main lessons derived from the comparison of philosophical vis-à-vis legal references to equality and suggests how the two disciplines can continue to inspire each other. The fourth chapter tests the arguments developed in earlier chapters by critically examining existing and potential cases of environmental discrimination.
Hungarian journal of legal studies, Dec 13, 2023
The Lawyer Quarterly, 2020
Environmental degradation is not distributed equally among various groups of people. There is a v... more Environmental degradation is not distributed equally among various groups of people. There is a vast amount of social studies, scientific reports and current legal cases which reveal the disproportionate burden placed on certain populations by the pollution of the natural environment. This paper is based on the idea that equal wellbeing of each individual is better protected when their status as collectivities is taken into account with regard to environmental issues. In this respect, the paper attempts to explore how the principle of equality and non-discrimination, Article 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights, helps defending rights of collectivities through an individual rights-based legal institution, namely European Court of Human Rights.
Consider the following example: X was dismissed from her job as a childminder because of being ob... more Consider the following example: X was dismissed from her job as a childminder because of being obese. In the case, it is evident that X was discriminated. Yet, the statutory law regulates an exhaustive list of discrimination grounds, i.e. limits the characteristics that the law protects. In this regard, somebody can only claim to be discriminated on the grounds of gender, disability, religion, sexual orientation, and age. What should the Court do?
Ankara Avrupa Calismalari Dergisi
Canadian Journal of Law & Jurisprudence
Ensuring equal liberties requires neutral, i.e. impartial, settings where nobody would be deprive... more Ensuring equal liberties requires neutral, i.e. impartial, settings where nobody would be deprived of freedom because of their personal characteristics. Religion and disability appear as characteristics which may clash with the existing social and physical environments. Therefore, the necessity of adjusting the existing environment, i.e., reasonable accommodation, is mostly discussed in reference to religion and disability. I aim to discuss reasonable accommodation from a different perspective and ask whether reasonable accommodation should be extended to age issues. I propose that age can lead to differences in conscience or culture like religion. Age can also be a source of dis/ability so it can be compared to accustomed disabilities. Eventually, age may also clash with the existing social and physical environments. I further propose that age is not only similar to but also different from religion and disability when it comes to reasonable accommodation. Therefore, I defend, reaso...
Review of European, Comparative & International Environmental Law
Discussions on equality between age groups and the practice of anti‐age discrimination law often ... more Discussions on equality between age groups and the practice of anti‐age discrimination law often tend to focus on the rights of the elderly on the labour market. This article is motivated by the current climate change cases, which emphasize broader age inequalities. It aims to highlight the unexplored potential of anti‐age discrimination law. Moreover, it explores the possible added value of this law when other legal ways to defend environmental rights are considered. Anti‐age discrimination law could thus offer a meaningful and effective ground to address age‐related environmental vulnerabilities.
La cour d’appel de La Haye a rendu le 9 octobre un arrêt historique en matière de justice climati... more La cour d’appel de La Haye a rendu le 9 octobre un arrêt historique en matière de justice climatique. Confirmant le jugement en première instance du 24 juin 2015, cette nouvelle décision confirme l’injonction aux autorités hollandaises de réduire d’au moins 25 % leurs émissions à l’horizon de 2020.