ABSTRACT
The United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD) defines the social contract as “the explicit or implicit agreements between state and citizens defining rights and obligations to ensure legitimacy, security, rule of law and social justice”. According to European think tanks IDDRI and the Hot or Cool Institute, it encompasses the “rights we enjoy, the duties we agree to, the responsibilities incumbent on institutions and the narratives we believe in”. There is no agreed definition of what an eco social contract (also called a “natural social contract”) is, but UNRISD argues that it “must recognize that humans are part of a global ecosystem. It must protect essential ecological processes, life support systems and the diversity of life forms, and pursue harmony with nature”.
