Professor Rosemary Lyster’s Pioneering Research in Climate Justice

As Co-Leader of the Climate Disaster and Adaptation theme at the Sydney Environment Institute, her work comes at a pivotal time when climate change is amplifying natural disasters worldwide.

Lyster’s research emphasises the importance of legal frameworks across the disaster management cycle: prevention, response, recovery and rebuilding, and compensation.

Her work gains urgency in light of recent catastrophic events, like Hurricanes Helene and Milton in the United States and disasters elsewhere in the world, which illustrate the growing severity of climate disasters.

These trends are underscored by the World Meteorological Organization’s confirmation that 2023 was the warmest year on record, and June 2024 reached a 1.5°C temperature rise above pre-industrial levels.

While international agreements like the Paris Agreement do not compensate for loss and damage from climate disasters, Lyster’s research is exploring ways to address these shortcomings. Insurance schemes and government disaster relief efforts also remain inadequate, making her work even more essential.

Recently, Professor Lyster was awarded an Australian Research Council grant to investigate how legal frameworks can enhance the resilience of Australia’s electricity infrastructure to extreme weather events.

This research is key to safeguarding the new infrastructure needed for the energy transition to Net Zero by 2050. In a 2024 publication, Lyster and her co-authors analysed the use of planning law to ensure that the infrastructure is not placed in the path of climate change impacts such as tornadoes, floods, bushfires, sea level rise and storm surge .

In recognition of her expertise, Professor Lyster was appointed to the Academic Circle supporting the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Right to Development.

In 2024, Lyster contributed to the Special Rapporteur’s report on Climate Justice: Loss and Damage, advocating for a more inclusive Multispecies Justice approach to climate justice. This report will be presented to the United Nations General Assembly on 25 October.

Just days after the report’s presentation, on 28 October, Professor Lyster will chair an event at the University of Sydney where the Special Rapporteur, Professor Surya Deva, will discuss his findings.

This event will provide a platform for important dialogue on the future of climate justice, directly connecting research at the University of Sydney to global policymaking efforts.

Looking ahead, Professor Lyster is organizing a high-profile conference on 12 February 2025 titled Climate Justice and Loss and Damage in the Pacific.

This conference will feature prominent figures such as Australia’s Ambassador on Climate Change, Fiji’s Deputy Prime Minister and the Special Rapporteur, focusing on the significant climate-related loss and damage faced by Pacific nations.

Through her pioneering research and global collaborations, Professor Lyster is positioning the Sydney Law School at the forefront of climate law, offering critical insights into how legal frameworks can address both human and environmental vulnerabilities in an era of unprecedented climate change.