States’ Human Rights Obligations in the Context of Climate Change

The report analyzes the 2020-2021 outputs of seven UN Human Rights Treaty Bodies (HRTBs), noting a significant increase in climate-related references despite COVID-19 disruptions. It highlights a shift toward questioning developed nations on mitigation and fossil fuel extraction, alongside a consistent focus on adaptation and the participation of vulnerable groups. The document also examines key individual communications, such as Teitiota v. New Zealand and Sacchi et al. v. Argentina et al., which establish precedents for climate-induced human rights violations and extraterritorial jurisdiction.

• Climate-related outputs from HRTBs increased significantly in 2021, with 69 references representing approximately 53% of total outputs, compared to 54 references (about 38%) in 2020.
• HRTBs are increasingly addressing climate change across all categories of States, moving beyond a traditional focus on Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and developing nations; 43 countries received their first-ever climate-related recommendation or question since 2020, including Brazil, France, Indonesia, and South Africa.
• Adaptation and disaster risk reduction remain the most common subjects of climate-related outputs, with 112 outputs on these themes in 2020 and 2021, frequently focusing on Indigenous Peoples, local communities, and ethnic minorities.
• There is a growing focus on the right to water as a climate-related human rights issue, with concerns raised in five Concluding Observations and 10 Lists of Issues between 2020 and 2021, specifically regarding sea-level rise and salination in places like Kiribati and Tuvalu.
• HRTBs are increasingly challenging developed states on mitigation and fossil fuel activities; for example, the CESCR recommended Norway reconsider its decision to increase oil and natural gas exploitation in the Arctic and Barents Sea, and the CRC recommended Poland phase out funding for coal-fired power plants.
• The report identifies a State obligation to regulate private business actors effectively to prevent human rights violations, including extraterritorial harms; however, this obligation has received limited attention in State reporting, with only 15 States receiving questions or recommendations on this in 2021.
• In the case of Teitiota v. New Zealand, the Human Rights Committee established that while the specific petition was rejected, the effects of climate change could violate the right to life and trigger non-refoulement obligations for deporting States.
• In Sacchi et al. v. Argentina, Brazil, France, Germany, and Turkey, the Committee on the Rights of the Child affirmed its jurisdiction over transboundary harm, ruling that a causal link exists when a State exercises effective control over emission sources that cause reasonably foreseeable harm to children outside its territory.
• The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) has begun addressing the intersection of climate change and racial discrimination, notably in its 2021 Concluding Observations to the Netherlands regarding the lack of support for affected communities in the Dutch Caribbean islands.

APA

McKernan, L., Wyss, J., Duyck, S., & Mingrone, F. (2022). States’ Human Rights Obligations in the Context of Climate Change. Center for International Environmental Law. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/HRTB-2022_23Jan23.pdf

Chicago

McKernan, Lucy, Juliette Wyss, Sébastien Duyck, and Francesca Mingrone. States’ Human Rights Obligations in the Context of Climate Change. Center for International Environmental Law, 2022. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/HRTB-2022_23Jan23.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=McKernan |first1=Lucy |last2=Wyss |first2=Juliette |last3=Duyck |first3=Sébastien |last4=Mingrone |first4=Francesca |title=States’ Human Rights Obligations in the Context of Climate Change |publisher=Center for International Environmental Law |date=2022 |url=https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/HRTB-2022_23Jan23.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{mckernan2022states, author = {McKernan, Lucy and Wyss, Juliette and Duyck, Sébastien and Mingrone, Francesca}, title = {{States’ Human Rights Obligations in the Context of Climate Change}}, institution = {Center for International Environmental Law}, year = {2022}, url = {https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/HRTB-2022_23Jan23.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }