UBIAZA Patricia, OSUNTOGUN A. J (Ph.D)

United Nations (UN) being the largest multilateral organization since its establishment in1945 has surmounted different challenges, however, a daunting challenge of the UN in the twenty-first century is climate change. Climate change has had a pandemonium effect on the global economy, social, and ecosystem of the world. In spite of these challenges, this paper argues that the cure to climate change however rests on strong multilateralism built on mutual trust, inclusion, and solidarity. This study is a call to reflect on the present-day multilateralism under the United Nations. It seeks to analyze how multilateralism has been and can be employed to address Climate Change in the UN. A Socio Legal study. Employing the doctrinal method, this paper adopted secondary data from the Peoples’ Climate Vote organized by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and its partners, including the University of Oxford. The survey was conducted in 2020 having 1.22 million participants across 50 countries and primary data was collated among122 participants in Nigeria. Empirical studies were also undertaken with the aid of structured individual interviews with key participants in specific environmental institutions within Nigeria and the United Nations. Responses from these stakeholders are analyzed with the support of doctrinal methods in making appropriate recommendations. The study revealed that the UN has positively impacted on climate change through its legal frameworks, institutional frameworks, and climate finance, among others.

Keywords: Climate Change, Multilateralism, Unilateralism, United Nations