‘We were heard’: the Pacific students who took their climate fight to the ICJ – and won

In a packed court thousands of kilometres from home, Cynthia Houniuhi saw years of work come to fruition with the landmark ICJ opinion on climate harm

“I’m so nervous about today … it’s going to be OK. Let’s pray.”

Those were the quiet but powerful words of Cynthia Houniuhi on Wednesday morning, just before the international court of justice (ICJ) handed down its historic advisory opinion on climate change at the Peace palace in The Hague.

In the packed courtroom, thousands of kilometres from home, tension hung in the air. For Houniuhi – one of the original 27 Pacific law students who sparked the global legal campaign that led to the ruling – the moment was overwhelming.

As the judges began to speak, she became teary. Years of hard work and late nights had come down to this.