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Incorporating Human Rights into Climate Action

Data Portal

Introduction

The integration of human rights considerations into climate policies is central to achieving climate action that is good for people as well as the planet and thus advancing climate justice. Actions taken to adapt to the impacts of climate change and to reduce the emissions that cause global warming, ultimately protect people’s rights as they aim to avoid dangerous climate change. However, climate actions designed and implemented without respect for human rights risk undermining people’s rights. These risks were recognised in the Paris Agreement which calls on Parties to respect and promote human rights when taking action on climate change.

The Mary Robinson Foundation – Climate Justice commissioned an extensive survey to assess the extent to which countries are reporting on the links between human rights and climate change in two international processes under the United Nations between January 2010 and December 2015. The findings of the research are summarised in the Foundation’s publication Incorporating Human Rights into Climate Action.

The research considered National Communications and National Adaptation Programmes of Action submitted to the United Nation’s Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and National Reports to the Universal Periodic Review under the Human Rights Council (HRC).

The research found that 40% of National Communications, 4% of National Adaptation Programmes of Action and 25% of national reports under the Universal Periodic Review made the link between climate change and human rights. The three recommendations emerging from the research are:

  1. Ensure that guidelines for monitoring and reporting frameworks under the Paris Agreement reflect commitments to respect human rights in climate action
  2. Encourage collaboration between human rights and climate change policy makers at the national level to prepare reports
  3. Promote collaboration between civil society organisations, national human rights institutions and national governments to enhance recognition of the linkages between human rights and climate change.

The Mary Robinson Foundation – Climate Justice and the Centre for International Environmental Law have collaborated to produce this online resource intended to provide helpful references for anyone seeking to better understand how states have reported on the linkages between human rights and climate action under the UNFCCC and the HRC.

How to use

  • Click on the UNFCCC or HRC to explore which countries have made the link between climate change and human rights in these processes

OR

  • Select a country to read the report extracts

OR

  • Select a right to get a report of all countries who have made reference to this right in their reports

Note: In the search results, the reference in parentheses gives the page number and year of the publication.

The Mary Robinson Foundation – Climate Justice and the Centre for International Environmental Law have collaborated to produce an online resource intended to provide helpful references for anyone seeking to better understand how states have reported on the linkages between human rights and climate action under the UNFCCC and the Human Rights Council.

The online resource can be found at:

https://www.mrfcj.org/incorporating-human-rights-into-climate-action/

National reporting on the interlinkages between human rights and climate action

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The lists displayed are the countries who reported and the rights that were explicitly referenced in reports

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For further information about human rights and climate action in {{foundCountry.name}} please visit: {{foundCountry.moreInfoUrl}}

For assistance with translation, please use: https://translate.google.com/

Our website contains links to websites owned and operated by third parties. If you use these links, you leave our Website. These links are provided for your information and convenience only and are not an endorsement by the Mary Robinson Foundation-Climate Justice or the Center for International Environmental Law of the content of such linked websites or third parties and neither party has control over the contents of any linked website and is not responsible for these websites or their content or availability.

For further information about national commitments to human rights and climate action please visit: http://climaterights.org/