Historic UN resolution recognizes healthy environment is a human right

In a landmark move, on 28 July the United Nations General Assembly recognized that a clean, healthy and sustainable environment is a universal human right. This historic resolution–agreed by the UN’s only forum with representation of all 193 Member States­–has the potential to bring real change. It could usher in social and economic transformation to advance an inclusive green recovery and accelerate progress on the 2030 Agenda. Member States now face a stark choice: to respect and uphold this right by taking action to address today’s multiple planetary crises, or to delay and obfuscate.

This resolution (confirming a 2021 resolution of the Human Rights Council) comes at a moment when growing multidimensional poverty, inequalities and fragility are exacerbated by closely-linked and complex crises. Conflict, pandemics, unsustainable debt, significant inflationary pressures, environmental degradation, biodiversity loss, pollution and climate change combine to create significant threats to human security and human development.

Every day research and news headlines confirm that human-induced environmental degradation and climate change are causing dangerous and widespread disruption of nature and livelihoods. In 2020 alone, natural disasters caused the displacement of 30 million people, three times the number of persons displaced during the same year by conflicts. Air pollution results in an estimated seven million deaths every year. Millions face challenges in accessing water in the Middle East and North Africa as rainfall is projected to decline by 20 to 40 percent. These challenges have been compounded by political, economic and social upheaval as a result of globally significant events including the health pandemic and the Ukraine war.