Search Climate Insights Directory

The Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) increasingly integrated climate change into its 2023 state reviews and released General Comment No. 26, which establishes the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment as implicit in the Convention. The CRC's work focused on state obligations for mitigation and adaptation, the regulation of private actors' contributions to environmental harm, and the protection of children's rights across various legal and procedural frameworks.

The report outlines how the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) interprets the 1989 CRC Convention to protect children from climate change. It highlights that while the Convention implicitly protects rights to life, health, and education, the Committee has explicitly urged States to place children's health at the center of climate strategies and to ensure children's participation in decision-making. The document analyzes 24 Concluding Observations from the past decade, noting a trend of recommendations directed toward climate-vulnerable developing countries, focusing on adaptation, disaster risk reduction, and the integration of child-sensitive strategies into national plans.

The briefing counters arguments from 'big polluters' regarding the ICJ's climate advisory proceedings, asserting that the UNFCCC and Paris Agreement do not displace customary international law, human rights obligations, or the duty to prevent transboundary harm. It argues that states have a legal obligation to phase out fossil fuels to meet these duties and that historical emissions since the 1960s are legally relevant due to scientific foreseeability. The document concludes that states must be held responsible for climate-related injuries through cessation of wrongful conduct and reparations, which could include debt cancellation and ecosystem restoration.

The UNEP Compendium documents the intersection of human rights and environmental law through a curated selection of global and regional instruments and judicial decisions. It analyzes how substantive rights (such as the rights to life, health, and property) and procedural rights (access to information, public participation, and access to justice) are used to address environmental degradation. The document highlights the 'greening' of human rights law, where tribunals increasingly interpret existing rights to encompass environmental protections, particularly for indigenous peoples and marginalized groups. It also details state obligations regarding industrial pollution and natural resource extraction, emphasizing duties of prevention, regulation, and the requirement for free, prior, and informed consent (FPIC) for indigenous communities.

The document argues that Strategic Environmental Assessments (SEA) are essential, self-standing legal obligations that must be conducted prior to the adoption of plans to effectively influence policy and assess cumulative climate impacts. It specifically contends that for fossil fuel projects, failing to assess 'downstream' emissions—which can exceed extraction emissions by up to 900%—renders an assessment partial and misleading. ClientEarth links these procedural requirements to the European Convention on Human Rights, asserting that fossil fuel extraction constitutes 'dangerous industrial activities' and that the principle of intergenerational equity requires the Court to consider the disproportionate risks posed to future generations and young people under Articles 2 and 8 of the Convention.

The document analyzes 32 youth climate litigation cases (litigants aged 7-30) filed between 1990 and 2022. It finds that while such cases are increasing in frequency—particularly in Europe—the majority result in unfavorable outcomes or remain pending. Most cases argue that states failed to take adequate climate measures, frequently relying on human rights grounds. The author concludes that future success depends on judicial willingness, procedural adherence, and the substantive strength of legal arguments.

The document outlines a youth manifesto for COP30, demanding structural inclusion in climate negotiations, the removal of financial and logistical barriers for youth from the Global South, and the integration of intergenerational equity and climate justice into official outcomes.

The Human Rights and Climate Change Working Group and associated organisations call on EU leadership to champion human rights within the Paris Agreement. They argue that climate change disproportionately affects vulnerable populations and that climate actions themselves can cause human rights abuses without safeguards. The letter specifically requests support for an amended Article 2(2) of the draft text to recognise the protection of human rights, indigenous peoples' rights, gender equality, and a just transition for the workforce.

The Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty Initiative submits that fossil fuel production is the primary driver of the climate emergency and therefore falls under the jurisdiction of human rights law. The brief contends that States have a duty of prevention to regulate, monitor, and phase out fossil fuels to protect fundamental rights, including the rights to life, health, and a healthy environment. It emphasizes differentiated obligations, arguing that wealthy, developed States must act first and provide support to less-developed nations. The document also advocates for a 'just transition' and increased transparency regarding fossil fuel reserves and production.

The Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty Initiative submits that fossil fuel production is the primary driver of the climate emergency and directly violates numerous human rights, including the rights to life, health, and a healthy environment. The document argues that states have a legal duty under the American Convention on Human Rights to regulate, monitor, and ultimately phase out fossil fuel production. It emphasizes differentiated responsibilities, asserting that wealthy, developed nations must lead the phase-out and provide financial and technical support to less developed states. The brief further advocates for a 'just transition' that protects vulnerable populations and ensures transparency through active disclosure of fossil fuel production data.

The document outlines various structural options for integrating principles into a Fossil Fuel Treaty, such as through dedicated provisions or preambles. It details 16 potential international law principles—including common but differentiated responsibilities, precaution, and just transition—explaining their legal nature, precedents in other treaties, and how they could be applied to regulate the phase-out of fossil fuel production.

The report examines various international legal frameworks and principles that could be incorporated into a future treaty to phase out fossil fuels. It discusses structural options for including these principles—either in a dedicated provision, the preamble, or substantive articles—and evaluates 16 specific legal principles, such as 'common but differentiated responsibilities' and 'intergenerational equity', detailing their legal status and potential application to fossil fuel production and a just transition.

The briefing argues that a human rights-based approach is an essential condition for stopping biodiversity loss in an equitable manner. It recommends that the post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) explicitly reference international human rights instruments, adopt a formal definition of 'human rights-based approach', and establish review mechanisms to monitor compliance. Key priorities include securing the land tenure rights of indigenous peoples and local communities (IPLCs), ensuring equitable governance in area-based measures, and protecting human environmental rights defenders.

Natural Justice argues that the EIA for Reconnaissance Energy Namibia's 2D seismic survey in the Kavango Sedimentary Basin fails to meet the 2012 EIA Regulations. The organization claims the assessment lacks a 'need and desirability' analysis, relies on an inadequate four-day baseline survey, and ignores significant impacts on endangered species like African wild dogs, pangolins, and elephants. Furthermore, it asserts that the project violates indigenous rights by failing to obtain free, prior, and informed consent and ignores Namibia's climate change policies and international treaty obligations regarding the Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area and the Okavango Delta.