April 4th, 2023
GENEVA (CH) – Today, the UN Human Rights Council adopted its first resolution following the UN universal recognition of the human right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment.
The fact that this resolution was adopted by consensus demonstrates that momentum continues to build towards the effective legal protection of the human right to a healthy environment and that the time is ripe for effective collective action to make this right a reality.
CIEL’s Human Rights and Climate Campaign Manager Sébastien Duyck:
“This resolution is critical as it reaffirms that everyone, everywhere in the world has the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment. Importantly, it identifies concrete steps to make this right a reality, beginning with protecting environmental defenders and communities facing the deadly impacts of the ongoing triple planetary crisis. The urgency underpinning these crises requires the United Nations and governments worldwide to accelerate efforts in protecting human rights and the planet and to continue to build upon these important and overdue steps.
One more time, we thank countries including Costa Rica, the Maldives, Morocco, Slovenia, and Switzerland for their leadership in making this progress possible and we look forward to further steps to protect and uphold this critical human right.”
###
Media contact: Rossella Recupero | press@ciel.org