A civil society campaign ensued, and earlier this year the idea gained the backing of the UN Secretary-General and 15 UN agencies. Initially championed by the Maldives and a small number of particularly vulnerable states, support and leadership has been provided by two successive UN special rapporteurs. Since that time, a number of countries have recognised this right in national legislation, and support for viewing the content of this right as universal and fundamental has grown. The need for a right “to an environment of a quality that permits a life of dignity and wellbeing” was first recognised in 1972 at the UN Conference on the Environment in Stockholm. Of particular importance, on the 8 October 2021, the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) adopted a landmark resolution confirming the right to a safe, clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, and called on countries around the world to work together towards its implementation. A concern with human rights would seem to be a no-brainer, but the COP26 negotiations were sadly deficient, both in recognising the impacts of climate on the health and rights of vulnerable populations, as well as in marshalling the monitoring and legal accountability mechanisms that a human rights framing can offer. Kent Buse and Sofia Gruskin reflect on the recent recognition of the universal right to a healthy environment, and outline actions to help accelerate the realisation of this right-particularly for those at greatest risk of the impact of climate changeĪs we reflect on the lessons of COP26, what it contains and must be acted upon, but also what is missing and must nonetheless be central to our concerns, now is the time for us collectively to deploy all the tools at our disposal.
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