RES/26/27 Human rights and climate change

GE.FCCC/CP/2010/7/Add.1, dec.1/CP.16. 4-08351 (E)

*1408351*

Human Rights Council Twenty-sixth session Agenda item 3 Promotion and protection of all human rights, civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to development

Resolution adopted by the Human Rights Council

26/27 Human rights and climate change

The Human Rights Council,

Guided by the Charter of the United Nations, and reaffirming the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action,

Recalling its resolutions 7/23 of 28 March 2008, 10/4 of 25 March 2009 and 18/22 of 17 October 2011 on human rights and climate change, and 16/11 of 24 March 2011, 19/10 of 22 March 2012 and 25/21 of 28 March 2014, on human rights and the environment,

Reaffirming the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the objectives and principles thereof, and emphasizing that parties should, in all climate change-related actions, fully respect human rights as enunciated in the outcome of the sixteenth session of the Conference of Parties to the Convention,1

Reaffirming also the commitment to enable the full, effective and sustained implementation of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change through long-term cooperative action, in order to achieve the ultimate objective of the Convention,

Welcoming the holding of the recent Conferences of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, including the seventeenth Conference of the Parties, held in November 2011 in Durban, South Africa, the eighteenth Conference of the Parties, held in November 2012 in Doha, and the nineteenth Conference of the Parties, held in November 2013 in Warsaw,

Welcoming also the outcome document “The future we want” of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development held in June 2012 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil,2

Notes the convening of the climate summit on 23 September 2014 by the Secretary- General aimed at mobilizing action and ambition in relation to climate change,

Recalling the Declaration of the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment, the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, Agenda 21, the Programme for the Further Implementation of Agenda 21, the Johannesburg Declaration on Sustainable Development and the Plan of Implementation of the World Summit on Sustainable Development,

Recognizing that human beings are at the centre of concerns for sustainable development, and that the right to development must be fulfilled so as to meet the development and environmental needs of present and future generations,

Recognizing also the challenges of climate change to development and to the progress made towards the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals, in particular with regard to the goals on the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger, environmental sustainability and health,

Acknowledging that, as stated in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the global nature of climate change calls for the widest possible cooperation by all countries and their participation in an effective and appropriate international response, in accordance with their common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities and their social and economic conditions,

Acknowledging also that, as stated in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, responses to climate change should be coordinated with social and economic development in an integrated manner with a view to avoiding adverse impact on the latter, taking into full account the legitimate priority needs of developing countries for the achievement of sustained economic growth and the eradication of poverty,

Reaffirming that all human rights are universal, indivisible, interdependent and interrelated,

Reaffirming also that it is the primary responsibility of States to promote and protect human rights;

Recalling the report of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on the relationship between climate change and human rights,3 the panel discussion on the relationship between climate change and human rights, held on 15 June 2009, at the eleventh session of the Human Rights Council, and the 2010 Social Forum, which focused on the relationship between climate change and human rights,4

Welcoming the convening of the seminar by the Office of the High Commissioner on 23 and 24 February 2012 on addressing the adverse impact of climate change on the full enjoyment of human rights, and recalling its summary report thereon,A/HRC/20/7.

Emphasizing that the adverse effects of climate change have a range of implications, both direct and indirect, for the effective enjoyment of human rights, including, inter alia, the right to life, the right to adequate food, the right to the highest attainable standard of health, the right to adequate housing, the right to self-determination, the right to

2 General Assembly resolution 66/288, annex.

3 A/HRC/10/61.

4 See A/HRC16/62 and Corr.1.

development and the right to safe drinking water and sanitation, and recalling that in no case may a people be deprived of its own means of subsistence,

Expressing concern that, while these implications affect individuals and communities around the world, the adverse effects of climate change will be felt most acutely by those segments of the population that are already in vulnerable situations owing to factors such as geography, poverty, gender, age, indigenous or minority status and disability,

Reaffirming that people in developing countries, particularly in least developed countries, small island developing States and African countries, that have contributed the least to global greenhouse gas emissions, are among the most vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change on the full and effective enjoyment of all human rights, including the right to development, and should be provided with predictable, sustainable and adequate support to meet the costs of adaptation to and mitigation of those adverse effects,

Recognizing the need to give due consideration in the elaboration of the post-2015 development agenda to the role of international cooperation in relation to the special needs and particular circumstances of developing countries and to addressing the adverse impact of climate change on the full and effective realization of human rights,

Recognizing also that climate change is an urgent global problem requiring a global solution, and that effective international cooperation to enable the full, effective and sustained implementation of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in accordance with the provisions and principles of the Convention is important in order to support national efforts for the realization of human rights affected by climate change-related impact,

Noting that, as stated in the Rio Declaration, States should cooperate to strengthen endogenous capacity-building for sustainable development by improving scientific understanding through the exchange of scientific and technological knowledge, and by enhancing the development, adaptation, diffusion and transfer of technologies, including new innovative technologies,

Affirming that human rights obligations, standards and principles have the potential to inform and strengthen international, regional and national policymaking in the area of climate change, promoting policy coherence, legitimacy and sustainable outcomes,

Noting the establishment of the Climate Vulnerable Forum and the launching of the second edition of Climate Vulnerability Monitor in 2012 in New York, which may become a useful tool to orient public policies,

1. Reiterates its concern that the adverse effects of climate change have a range of direct and indirect implications for the effective enjoyment of all human rights, and that the effects of climate change will be felt most acutely by individuals and communities around the world that are already in vulnerable situations owing to geography, poverty, gender, age, indigenous or minority status or disability;

2. Expresses concern that climate change has contributed to the increase of both sudden-onset natural disasters and slow-onset events, and that these events have adverse effects on the full enjoyment of all human rights;

3. Emphasizes the urgent importance of continuing to address, as they relate to States’ human rights obligations, the adverse consequences of climate change for all, particularly in developing countries and its people whose situation is most vulnerable to climate change, especially those in a situation of extreme poverty, and deteriorating livelihood conditions;

4. Stresses the importance of fostering dialogue and cooperation between relevant international organizations and stakeholders to develop the analysis of the linkages between human rights and climate change;

5. Calls upon all States to continue to enhance international dialogue and cooperation in relation to the adverse impact of climate change on the enjoyment of human rights, including the right to development, particularly in developing countries, especially least developed countries, small island developing States and African countries, including through dialogue and measures, such as the implementation of practical steps to promote and facilitate capacity-building, financial resources and technology transfer;

6. Decides to incorporate into its programme of work for the twenty-eighth session a full-day discussion on specific themes relating to human rights and climate change on the basis of the different elements contained in the present resolution, and to dedicate one panel to identifying challenges and ways forward towards the realization of all human rights for all, including the right to development, in particular those in vulnerable situations, as well as the measures and best practices to promote and protect human rights that can be adopted by States in addressing the adverse effects of climate change on the full and effective enjoyment of human rights, and another panel discussion to how climate change has had an adverse impact on States’ efforts to progressively realize the right to food, and policies, lessons learned and good practices;

7. Invites the special procedures mandate holders, within their respective mandates, and other relevant stakeholders, including academic experts and civil society organizations, to participate actively in the panel discussions;

8. Encourages relevant special procedures mandate holders to give consideration to the issue of climate change and human rights within their respective mandates;

9. Requests the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to submit to the Human Rights Council, at its session following the full-day discussion, a summary report, including any recommendations stemming therefrom, for consideration of further follow-up action;

10. Decides to consider the possibility of organizing follow-up events on climate change and human rights within its future programme of work;

11. Requests the Secretary-General and the High Commissioner to provide all the human and technical assistance necessary for the effective and timely realization of the above-mentioned panel discussions and summary report thereon;

12. Decides to remain seized of the matter.

40th meeting 27 June 2014

[Adopted without a vote.]