1. Defending the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment: a human rights framework

Time to complete Chapter 1: ~2h

By the end of this Chapter 1, you will be able to:

• Recognise who environmental human rights defenders are, the contexts in which they operate and understand the human rights legal frameworks for their protection.
• Identify ways to hold governments and non-State actors accountable for human rights violations and abuses related to the environment, drawing on available frameworks and mechanisms for civil society organisations.

From the time we grow up, our grandparents teach us to love nature and the environment, to respect rivers, lakes and mountains, because, as children, they explain to us that all of it is sacred.
Bernardo Caal Xol, from Guatemala

Before going into the details of the frameworks and mechanisms that can be of interest to you as environmental human rights defenders, we must take a moment to reflect on the journey to recognise the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment.

Environmental rights, principles, and regulations were designed to protect the environment while safeguarding the well-being of individuals and communities that depend on it. These rights are closely linked to sustainability, as they aim to balance economic development with the conservation of natural resources. It can range from the right to adequate food to the right to clean water, to the right to access environmental information and to public participation, among others.

For decades, the world treated human rights and environmental protection as separate issues:

• Human rights focused on people (freedom, health, culture).
• The environment focused on science (oceans, forests, biodiversity).

This separation was artificial. You cannot enjoy your human rights if your land, water, and air are destroyed. For Indigenous Peoples and other communities, the land is life, it is survival. It embodies the social, spiritual, environmental and economic existence of Indigenous Peoples and other local communities. It is a living heritage that provides food, medicine, shelter, identity, belonging continuity between generations.

How we got here?

Recognising 'environmental human rights' was not easy, it took:

• Community resistance and advocacy.
• Courageous defenders protecting their territories.
• Independent scientific evidence.
• Strategic litigation in national and international courts.

Let’s look at the two key milestones that changed the game for defenders like you.

1. Stockholm Declaration (1972): The First Link

   This declaration stated that economic growth cannot come at the cost of poisoning our air, water, and oceans. It was the first time global leaders admitted that industrialised and developing nations had to work together to protect the planet. The world finally agreed: A healthy environment is essential for human dignity.

2. Rio Declaration (Early 1990s): Bringing it Down to Earth

   The Rio Declaration created a practical framework. It combined four essentials into one document:

   • Environmental protection.
   • Economic development.
   • Social equity (fairness).
   • Government responsibility.

The result: Advocates proved that development cannot happen at any cost.

From theory to action: The climate reality

As climate change worsens, the link between human rights and the environment becomes undeniable. Environmental destruction is now recognised as a direct threat to: Fundamental human rights including access to clean water, safe housing, gender equity, and Indigenous Peoples rights. Because of constant pressure by defenders, the environment is now a cross-cutting issue. You can analyse human rights cases with an environmental angle. Twenty years after the Rio Declaration, the UN's 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) made the link between human rights and the environment even stronger.

These global commitments are not just words. Many countries have used them to change their national laws:

• Some nations added the Right to a Clean, Healthy and Sustainable Environment to their Constitution.
• Others have passed laws limiting pollution and protecting ecosystems.

TIP! When speaking to local authorities, remind them: 'Our country promised to follow these global goals. Protecting our land and environment is a legal obligation, not just a request.'

In the next section, you'll discover what lies behind the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment.