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UNEP-OHCHR Bulletin – Fourth Edition, October 2022 THEMES: Pollution and Plastic

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Key: The main sections are in UPPERCASE while the sub sections / stories are in Sentence case.

  1. INTRODUCTION
  2. THEMATIC INPUTS
  3. A gender perspective on artisanal and small-scale gold mining under the Minamata Convention on Mercury
  4. A right to live in a world free of plastic pollution
  5. A Human Rights-Based Approach to the Plastics Crisis
  6. Human Rights and the Future Plastics Treaty
  7. GLOBAL UPDATES
  8. UN General Assembly Recognizes Right to a Healthy Environment
  9. UNEA 5.2
  10. UNEP @ 50
  11. INC and open-ended working group: Towards an international legally binding instrument to end plastic pollution
  12. First Global Meeting of National Focal Points to the Fifth Montevideo Programme
  13. Rights of the Child in Relation to the Environment
  14. UNFCCC SB56
  15. #WikiForHumanRights : Right to a healthy environment 2022 Campaign
  16. HRC 49
  17. REGIONAL / FIELD UPDATES
  18. Sixth Annual UNEP-OHCHR Workshop for Land and Environment Defenders
  19. Collective Effort in South-East Asia to End Plastic Pollution
  20. RESOURCES FOR THE COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE
  21. Marine Litter, Plastic Pollution and Human Rights
  22. Online courses
  23. Multimedia Resources
  24. Publications
  25. Special Rapporteurs Reports

INTRODUCTION

About us

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is the leading global environmental authority that sets the global environmental agenda, promotes the coherent implementation of the environmental dimension of sustainable development within the United Nations system, and serves as an authoritative advocate for the global environment. UNEP’s mission is to provide leadership and encourage partnership in caring for the environment by inspiring, informing, and enabling nations and peoples to improve their quality of life without compromising that of future generations.

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The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (UN Human Rights) is the leading UN entity on human rights. The General Assembly entrusted both the High Commissioner and her Office with a unique mandate to promote and protect all human rights for all people. The United Nations human rights programme aims to ensure that the protection and enjoyment of human rights is a reality in the lives of all people. UN Human Rights also plays a crucial role in safeguarding the integrity of the three interconnected pillars of the United Nations – peace and security, human rights, and development.

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THEMATIC INPUTS

A gender perspective on artisanal and small-scale gold mining under the Minamata Convention on Mercury

By Monika Stankiewicz, Executive Secretary of the Minamata Convention on Mercury, and Lara Ognibene, Legal Officer and Gender Focal Point, Secretariat of the Minamata Convention on Mercury

Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) continues to be the sector demanding the largest quantity of mercury globally, with an estimated 14-19 million people working in the industry. Approximately 4.5 million of these workers are women and 600,000 are children (UNEP 2019a).

Despite women making up 30 per cent of the global ASGM workforce, their work is often undervalued and impeded, as they face particular occupational and socioeconomic hazards and vulnerabilities. In general, women’s lack of formal rights and access to land, their role as the primary providers of domestic services, and the chance afforded by ASGM to earn an independent income to lift them out of poverty are complicating factors in addressing their exposure to mercury. Addressing mercury exposure therefore also requires addressing other socio-economic issues, including women’s ongoing access to agricultural land and resources.

The Minamata Convention on Mercury requires each Party that has ASGM within its territory to take steps to reduce, and, where feasible, eliminate, the use of mercury and mercury compounds in such mining and processing. The approach of the Minamata Convention to ASGM is unique among multilateral environmental agreements in the way it addresses the ASGM informal sector. Mindful of the social and economic complexities related to ASGM, the negotiators of the Convention decided not to impose a total ban on mercury use in ASGM but to give Parties flexibility in the way they meet their national reduction targets.

Parties who determine that artisanal and small-scale gold mining and processing in its territory is more than insignificant shall develop and implement National Action Plans (NAPs) which, in accordance with Annex C of the Convention, are to include strategies to prevent the exposure of vulnerable populations, particularly children and women of child-bearing age, especially pregnant women, to mercury used in ASGM. UNEP finalized in mid-2021 a document on incorporating gender dimensions into national strategy setting in chemicals management and a Quick Start Guide to support gender mainstreaming in the development of ASGM NAPs.

As of July 2022, eighteen countries had submitted NAPs on ASGM to the secretariat of the Minamata Convention. Some NAPs describe plans for policy, training, health and financial remedies for the situation, such as legislating for gender equality and empowerment of women; addressing gender-based violence in the sector; promoting gender-disaggregated data; facilitating women’s leadership roles; establishing health care services targeted at women miners; and assisting women with improved financial literacy to enable them to find work outside of the mines.

In addition to incorporating gender dimensions into NAPs for ASGM, more work is necessary to support and advance a gender-responsive implementation of the Minamata Convention and increase its effectiveness. To address this need, the in-person segment of the fourth meeting of the Conference the Parties to the Minamata Convention on Mercury, which took place from 21 to 25 March 2022 in Bali, Indonesia, adopted its first decision on gender mainstreaming. The decision requests the secretariat to develop a gender action plan for the Minamata Convention for consideration and possible adoption at its fifth meeting in 2023.

Thanks to the generous financial support of Sweden, the secretariat will develop a plan to provide a blueprint for actions, including targets and indicators of progress, to promote gender equality and bring a gender lens to all activities undertaken by Minamata Convention actors, including research, evidence-gathering, and public awareness activities.

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A right to live in a world free of plastic pollution

By Rolph Payet, Executive Secretary for the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions

In the last issue of this bulletin, we celebrated the historic global recognition by the Human Rights Council of the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment. Without a doubt, the resolution was a watershed moment in the fight against the triple planetary crisis of pollution, biodiversity loss and climate change.

Pollution has been identified as one of the three planetary crises that threaten human health and the environment. It is necessarily human-induced, and largely drives climate change and biodiversity loss by negatively impacting on the quality of air, soil and water. However, its effects are mostly invisible to the naked eye, until it’s too late.

One could claim that pollution brought about by plastics waste is easier to identify and tackle, but that is not entirely true. The current plastics waste crisis is underpinned by the ubiquitous production and use of plastics, and the durable nature of the material which can be broken down into seemingly infinite micro and nano particles.

For instance, what we typically associate with plastics waste are objects like single-use bottles and fishing nets that have been abandoned in the ocean. But what we usually do not grasp nor control are the microplastics being consumed by fish, seeping into the soil in landfills, and being carried across countries by air. Many of these particles contain toxic plastics additives that can cause cancer, damage immune and reproductive systems, and impair intellectual functions. And all of them cause degradation to land and marine ecosystems.

The Plastic Waste Amendments are a steppingstone towards ending plastic pollution. The Basel Convention is currently informing the work of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee, established to develop an international global legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, in accordance with the historic resolution adopted during the fifth session of the United Nations Environment Assembly. The goal is to address the full lifecycle of plastics from production and consumption to the environmentally sound management of plastics waste. In that regard, the Basel Convention brings more than forty years of experience on how best to tackle pollution from wastes. More information on the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee is available throughout this “Pollution and Plastic” themed Bulletin.

The Secretariat of the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions recently launched an international campaign to inform the public of these crucial steps taken to curb the plastic waste crisis. Under the slogan Plastic is Forever, so it’s time to get clever about managing it, the campaign includes public service announcements by celebrities, an illuminations show on Geneva’s Palais des Nations, a photography competition, a social media challenge, and a hackathon.

A Human Rights-Based Approach to the Plastics Crisis

By Marcos Orellana, UN Special Rapporteur on Toxics and Human Rights

At every stage of its cycle, plastics threaten human rights. This is because the plastics crisis is not just about the volumes of plastic waste and its mismanagement, but also about: extraction and transport of fossil fuels; manufacturing that releases hazardous substances; and chemicals added to plastics that pose threats to human health and the environment. Recognizing the science, challenges and harms of plastics, States are negotiating an internationally binding agreement on plastic pollution.

The United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) resolution, “End Plastics Pollution: Towards a legally binding instrument”, mandates negotiations based on a comprehensive approach that addresses the full lifecycle of plastics. This comprehensive approach in the resolution opens the door to human rights in the negotiations, as human rights are not only directly implicated by the plastics cycle; human rights are essential for the legitimacy and success of this instrument.

Infusing the rights to information and participation allows civil society and affected populations meaningful input in decision-making without discrimination. Principles of accountability, prevention, precaution, polluter pays and just transition are essential for creating solutions for affected communities and ecosystems inundated by plastics. Effective remedies ensure accountability and effective relief from violations that occur throughout each stage of the plastics cycle.

The way to stop further environmental degradation and decrease the harms to human health and the environment from plastics is by creating a chemically-safe circular economy and regulating it throughout the supply chain. This approach ensures plastics policy does not compromise the effective enjoyment of human rights for the sake of profit expectation of certain business entities. This includes addressing the inequities in the global plastics trade which place an increased burden on developing countries that often receive industrialized countries’ plastic waste. Often, the plastic is dumped and burned, affecting local communities living in poverty.

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To achieve a chemically-safe circular economy, consumers and affected communities must have access to accurate, complete, and understandable information on the volumes of plastic production, the toxic additives used in products, and their impacts on human health and the environment. Access to this information can also enable meaningful public participation in plastics policy and decision-making. A chemically-safe circular economy should not endorse false or misleading solutions. The one-stop plastic recycling solution promoted by industries, manufacturers, and the international waste trade is a mirage creating an illusion of proper recycling. Only 9 percent of plastics produced have been recycled. As of now, there exists no economically feasible method of recycling.

One of the greatest constraints towards a chemically-safe circular economy for plastics is the toxic chemical additives they contain. Additives are used in plastic material for various purposes, from changing color and texture to increasing the product’s flexibility or as a flame retardant. Recycling plastic products with toxic additives injects these hazardous chemicals into new products. Burning plastics to avoid recycling can transform these additives into highly toxic chemicals, contaminating soils and food sources. Microplastics, once ingested into the human body, may increase antibiotic-resistant microbes, and have even been found in the placenta of unborn babies.

Most consumers lack the proper information to understand the potential harms of these toxic additives. For instance, bisphenol A, used in laptops, cell phones, baby bottles, water main pipes, laboratory and hospital equipment, and food containers to make polycarbonate, can cause ovarian and uterine health complications, cancer, cardiovascular disease, and more. Additionally, UV-328, which protects damage to plastic polymers from ultraviolet radiation in personal care products, rubber, and coatings, is capable of long-range transportation of plastics and threatens the food security of Indigenous People and coastal communities. Toxic additives can leach into the environment, bioaccumulate, and contaminate the food supply.

Some legal protections already exist that help combat the use of some additives. For instance, the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants has listed 27 persistent organic pollutants to be eliminated, 2 to be restricted and 7 to have their unintentional release reduced. Many of these are used as plastic additives, including UV-328. Annex C of the Stockholm Convention lists waste incineration and open burning of waste as primary sources of dioxins and other persistent organic pollutants. These solutions, however, are fragmented and do not address the rights to information, participation, and remedy inextricably linked to the use of toxics in plastics and human rights violations.

As we look towards a new plastics treaty, not only does the volume of plastic production need to be reduced dramatically; the problems additives pose to the environment and human rights must be targeted. A possible solution for restricting the additives into plastic could be creating a “reverse annex” in the treaty which would include only those chemicals authorized as additives - once they are found to be necessary, safe, and conducive for the circular economy. Additionally, consumers must have access to adequate information on chemical additives in plastic products in order to understand their potential environmental and health hazards. Furthermore, information on additives is the key to a chemically-safe recycling scheme. In the end, access to information is a human right and plays a critical role in enabling a chemically-safe circular economy.

International cooperation and human rights standards are indispensable for resolving the plastics crisis. States and business have a responsibility to abide by the principles and treaties that enshrine human rights protections. The recognition of the right to a healthy environment by the Human Rights Council in 2021 shows there is an understanding of the harms done and a political will to change it. With a new plastics treaty built on a human rights approach, we have a chance to turn the tide on plastics.

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Human Rights and the Future Plastics Treaty

By Andrés Del Castillo and Giulia Carlini, Senior Attorneys for the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL)

The plastics crisis is a common concern of humankind. Recent scientific studies have found microplastics in human blood, lungs, and placenta, as well as in livestock feed and milk and meat products. And this is not surprising, given the growing use of microplastics in agrochemical products. Exposure to toxic chemicals in plastics can also affect future generations, impacting fertility, shortening gestation periods, and lowering birth weights. The growing scientific evidence demonstrating the human health dimension of the crisis, coupled with the numerous human rights abuses that result from the plastic life cycle, are garnering more public awareness and demand holistic global solutions. The most effective solution would be a global plastics treaty driven by a human rights-based approach.

The fossil fuel industry has been expanding oil and gas production and pushing plastics as a way to prop up demand for its products. This puts human rights, health, the environment, and the climate at risk. Current projections estimate that production of primary plastics will increase to 1,100 million metric tons per year by 2050 — almost three times the total rate of plastic production in 2019. A recent scientific study found that the current rate of plastic production already exceeds the planetary boundary for novel entities (new substances that could impact the integrity of Earth system processes). These planetary boundaries mark the safe operating space for humanity.

Two reports from 2021, one from UNEP and the other from the UN Special Rapporteur on Toxics and Human Rights, affirmed that the entire life cycle of plastics represents a global threat to human rights and environmental justice. The same year, the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Peoples recommended the full inclusion of Indigenous Peoples in developing plastic governance, and emphasized the need for recognition of their traditional knowledge, practices, and innovations.

Other UN special procedures have also raised concerns about human rights abuses related to plastics, and the need for corporations to conduct environmental and human rights impact assessments as part of the due diligence process. States have a responsibility to protect, respect, and fulfill the human right to seek, receive, and impart environmental information, in particular, the right to know when plastics contain hazardous chemicals.

As early as 2017, UNEP identified a gap in the plastic governance framework because of the lack of international mechanisms for liability or compensation for plastic pollution. In March 2022, at the UN Environment Assembly, 175 countries adopted Resolution 5/14 establishing a mandate that calls on countries to develop an instrument to address plastic’s full, toxic life cycle: from the extraction of fossil fuels to production to end of life.

Given the resolution’s call for “the widest and most effective participation possible,” it will be necessary to ensure negotiations are inclusive of all stakeholders. The Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) published a dedicated briefing on ensuring public participation during the plastics treaty negotiations, paying particular attention to specific groups such as workers, women, children and youth, and Indigenous Peoples. The briefing emphasizes that stakeholders should have the ability to make statements and propose text on issues that affect them, and that the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) should develop mechanisms for stakeholders to channel their concerns. The multistakeholder forum, which was also mandated by the UNEA resolution, is complementary, but not a substitute for public participation in decision-making processes. In June, the Working Group of the Parties to the Aarhus Convention held a session and urged Parties to promote the Convention’s principles for public participation in the plastics Treaty negotiation process.

This future treaty has the potential to become the “great enabler” for transformative global plastic reduction and system change, but only if it centers human rights in the negotiations and in the final text. In order to achieve an ambitious treaty, CIEL and its partners have prepared a series of briefings on public participation, the form and the content of the treaty, and factsheets on plastics and human rights in the Pacific region.

Read article: Clean Seas Campaign promotes the right to a healthy environment, including plastic-free oceans
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GLOBAL UPDATES

UN General Assembly Recognizes Right to a Healthy Environment

On 28 July, 2022, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution recognizing the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment. The resolution further recognized that the impacts of the triple planetary crisis of climate change, biodiversity and nature loss, and pollution and waste have negative implications on the effective enjoyment of human rights, and in particular impacts already vulnerable communities and populations.

Virtually almost all countries have national laws designed to limit pollution, protect plants and animals, and counter climate change. But those rules are not always fully implemented and when they are violated, citizens often struggle to hold governments and companies accountable. At the national level, declaring a healthy environment a human right would empower people to challenge environmentally destructive policies in relation to states’ human rights obligations, which is well-defined in many countries. Leaders and activists are hopeful the UNGA resolution will have the same historic potential as UNGA resolution 64/292 (adopted 12 years ago on 28 July 2010) that recognized the right to sanitation and clean water, which spurred countries across the globe to add drinking water protections to their constitutions.

Secretary-General Antonio Guterres welcomed the adoption of the resolution, and noted that it is “an important tool for accountability and climate justice. The well-being of people around the world and the survival of future generations depends on the health of our planet.” Executive Director of UNEP, Inger Andersen, stated that “This resolution sends a message that nobody can take nature, clean air and water, or a stable climate away from us – at least, not without a fight.” High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, hailed the historic resolution and called for “urgent action to make it a reality for all.”

Full statement: Michelle Bachelet on UNGA resolution

UNEA 5.2

At the resumed fifth session of UNEA (UNEA 5.2), member states adopted a resolution establishing an intergovernmental negotiating committee (INC) towards drafting a new international legally-binding instrument on plastic pollution. The resolution reaffirms the need to prevent plastic pollution and its related risks to human health and adverse effects on human well-being and the environment.

The resolution mandates that an ad-hoc open-ended working group will be convened to prepare for the work of the INC, including the rules of procedure and organization of work of the INC. The INC is then tasked to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, with the ambition of completing its work by the end of 2024. More information on the resolution, establishment of the INC and open-ended working group can be found below.

UNEP @ 50

The political declaration of the special session of the United Nations Environment Assembly to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the establishment of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP/EA.SS.1/4), a political declaration mandated under UN General Assembly resolution 73/333, available here, was adopted on 3 March 2022, at UNEP @ 50.

The political declaration includes important provisions that help UNEP and the international community to strengthen international environmental law and international environmental governance, including: reference to the Human Rights Council resolution 48/13 recognizing the right to a healthy environment; use of the term ‘environmental rule of law’ in two instances; and a call to increase support from Member States for the success of the Fifth Montevideo Programme on the Development and Periodic Review of Environmental Law.

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INC and open-ended working group:

Towards an international legally binding instrument to end plastic pollution

2 March 2022 marked an historical day as UNEA resolution 5/14, entitled ‘End plastic pollution: Towards an international legally binding instrument’ was adopted at the resumed fifth session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-5.2) in Nairobi, Kenya. Inger Andersen, Executive Director of UNEP referred to it as the most important international multilateral environmental deal since the Paris climate accord.

Heads of State, Ministers of environment and other representatives from 175 United Nations Member States endorsed this landmark resolution that mandated the Executive Director of UNEP to convene an intergovernmental negotiating committee (INC) to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment, commencing its work during the second half of 2022, with the ambition of completing its work by the end of 2024. According to the resolution, the instrument to be negotiated could include both binding and voluntary approaches, based on a comprehensive approach that addresses the full lifecycle of plastic, taking into account, inter alia, the principles of the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, as well as national circumstances and capabilities.

UNEA identified certain provisions that could be included in the instrument, such as the promotion of sustainable production and consumption of plastics, including product design, environmentally sound waste management, and through resource efficiency and circular economy approaches; technical and capacity means of implementation and adequate financial and technical assistance; national reporting; means of assessing implementation and effectiveness of the instrument; compliance; national action plans; scientific and socio-economic assessments related to plastic pollution; and cooperation at all levels.

As governments and stakeholders embark on the negotiation of the instrument, it is important to recall that the high and rapidly increasing levels of plastic pollution represent a serious environmental problem at a global scale, negatively impacting the three dimensions of sustainable development. Moreover, plastic pollution has been recognized in the resolution as a risk to human health, having adverse effects on human well-being as well as on the environment.

During the negotiation of the UNEA resolution, and now at its implementation stage, there has been a focus on stakeholder engagement and the need to ensure the widest possible and effective participation in the Open-ended Working Group (OEWG) meeting and the INC. The resolution further indicates that the instrument to be negotiated could include provisions on encouraging action by all stakeholders, including the private sector; and on initiating a multi-stakeholder action agenda.

UNEA recognized in the preamble of the resolution the significant contribution made by workers under informal and cooperative settings to collecting, sorting and recycling plastics in many countries and mandated the INC to consider in its deliberations on the instrument, inter alia, the best available science, traditional knowledge, knowledge of indigenous peoples and local knowledge systems, as well as lessons learned and best practices, including those from informal and cooperative settings. Finally, the resolution requested the Executive Director, subject to the availability of financial resources, to convene a forum in conjunction with the first session of the INC (INC-1) that is open to all stakeholders to exchange information and activities related to plastic pollution.

UNEA also requested the Executive Director of UNEP to convene an ad-hoc open-ended working group (OEWG), which met in Dakar, Senegal from 30 May to 1 June 2022 in a hybrid format to prepare for the work of the INC, and in particular to discuss the timetable and organization of work of the INC. The OEWG agreed on a provisional timetable for meetings of the INC and on a set of documents to be prepared by the secretariat for consideration by the INC at its first session, tentatively scheduled for November 2022. UNEP organized Multi-Stakeholder Dialogues as part of the programme of the OEWG with the view to engage and hear the voices of stakeholders that will be impacted by the international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, but who normally do not participate directly in the negotiations. The outcomes will be reflected in the OEWG report.

Lastly, the resolution requested the Executive Director to advance the work under the Global Partnership on Marine Litter, a multistakeholder partnership which brings together all the actors working on marine litter and plastic pollution prevention and reduction. UNEP envisions the partnership to be elevated to a partnership on plastics that can bring together all constituencies.

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First Global Meeting of National Focal Points to the Fifth Montevideo Programme

In forty years of implementation, the Montevideo Programme for the Development and Periodic Review of Environmental Law has played a “powerful and transformational role in helping the formation of national environmental laws and the negotiation of several MEAs,” highlighted Mr. Arnold Kreilhuber, Deputy Director of UNEP’s Law Division, in his opening remarks during the resumed in-person (hybrid) segment of the First Global Meeting of National Focal Points under the Fifth Programme for the Development and Periodic Review of Environmental Law (Montevideo Programme V).

National Focal Points and stakeholders met in person, from 6 - 9 June 2022, in Nairobi, Kenya, a year after the first segment was hosted virtually. While National Focal Points at the first segment of the Meeting had taken important decisions to kickstart the implementation of Montevideo Programme V, including the appointment of a Steering Committee for Implementation, the second segment of the First Global Meeting allowed for a full discussion on the priority areas for the implementation of the Programme.

The resumed in-person (hybrid) segment of the First Global Meeting of National Focal Points to the Fifth Montevideo Programme in Nairobi, Kenya.

In June 2022, Member States agreed on three priority areas, namely, legal responses to the climate change, biodiversity, and pollution crises (addressing specifically air pollution, waste pollution, and enhanced compliance and enforcement to address pollution). These three core priority areas will be complemented by cross-cutting activities focusing on access to information and public participation, education, and capacity-building. The Secretariat was tasked with preparing Implementation Roadmap(s) outlining the program of work for each priority area.

Furthermore, the National Focal Points and participants considered the topic of stakeholder engagement and partnerships. It was agreed that the Programme needed to increase its visibility and promote partnerships. To that end, delegates suggested that UNEP’s Law and Environment Platform (UNEP-LEAP), the digital backbone of Montevideo Programme V, be used as appropriate. The comments and feedback received during the meeting will be taken into account by the secretariat to develop a draft strategy for Stakeholder Engagement and Partnerships.

Read more about the resumed in-person (hybrid) segment of the First Global Meeting of National Focal Points here.

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Rights of the Child in Relation to the Environment

In the last six months, UNEP and OHCHR have collaborated on a number of activities focused on the rights of the child in relation to the environment. Several of these activities contribute to the implementation of the UN Joint Commitment to promote the rights of children, youth, and future generations to a healthy environment and their meaningful participation in decision-making. For instance, UNEP launched online surveys (for adults and for children) as part of a consultative process that will inform and support the organization in establishing plans for implementing the Joint Commitment.

On 12 April, UNEP together with OHCHR, UNICEF and UNDP organized an expert seminar to promote the global recognition of the right to a healthy environment by the UN General Assembly with the participation of a youth climate activist.

Moments captured at the expert seminar organized by UNEP together with OHCHR, UNICEF and UNDP.

To further promote the rights of youth climate activists, UNEP together with OHCHR, UNICEF, and UNDP along with CSO partners, concluded preparatory national consultations on climate justice for children and youth in the lead up to the Regional Dialogue on Climate Justice for Children, Youth and Future Generations. There were 27 consultations completed in 12 countries across Asia. Summary documents of these consultations can be found at https://bangkok.ohchr.org/adcj2022/. The Regional Dialogue, convened from 28-30 May, was engaging, inspiring, insightful, energetic and educational. Children and youth led discussions on climate change justice and provided their thoughts on the challenges, opportunities and importantly solutions. There were many incredible solutions proposed through active engagement from 305 children (9-17) on day 1 and 284 children on day 2 and from 331 young adults (18-13) on day 1 and 240 on day 2 and 341 participants of all ages during the intergenerational dialogue on day 3.

Participants of the Regional Dialogue on Climate Justice for Children, Youth and Future Generations.

The two organisations have also collaborated towards providing assistance to the Committee on the Rights of the Child in the development of a general comment on child rights and the environment (to be finalized in 2023) aimed at a greater child environmental rights integration in the UN human rights system. Additional information is available here. Finally, a number of educational and awareness-raising materials were developed in the last six months. For instance, to support and empower children and young people, UNEP produced an online course for children/young people on human rights and the environment. UNEP and OHCHR, in partnership with UNICEF, also launched a video on children’s rights to a healthy environment.

UNFCCC SB56

From 6-16 June, the 56th meeting of the Subsidiary Bodies to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) took place in Bonn, Germany. The meetings of the Subsidiary Bodies consists of a series of parallel meetings and events involving more than 3000 climate experts, activists and policy-makers from around the world. Several agenda items critical for integrating a human rights-based approach to climate action were discussed, including climate finance, loss and damage (included the operationalization of the new Santiago Network on Loss and Damage), the Global Stocktake, Action for Climate Empowerment, and the mid-term review of the UNFCCC enhanced five-year Lima work programme on gender and its gender action plan. The Special Rapporteur on promotion and protection of human rights in the context of climate change participated in a number of events during the second week of SB56.

UNEP and OHCHR co-organized an official side event on 15 June entitled ‘Advancing a human rights-based approach to climate finance’ together with Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, Heinrich-Böll Stiftung (HBS) and UNDP. The event aimed to explore opportunities to better integrate human rights in climate finance and associated governance structures, e.g. through impact assessments, strong social and environmental safeguards, meaningful and informed participation and access to independent grievance mechanisms, and featured the Special Rapporteur on climate change and human rights, and representatives from civil society, the Green Climate Fund, the Climate Vulnerable Forum, HBS and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

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#WikiForHumanRights : Right to a healthy environment 2022 Campaign

For the second year, the Wikimedia Foundation, OHCHR and UNEP have co-organized the #WikiForHumanRights : Right to a Healthy Environment global campaign. This year’s campaign was launched with a virtual event on April 14th, 2022. The event featured Elizabeth Mrema, Executive Secretary for the Convention on Biological Diversity, and Marcos Orellana, Special Rapporteur on toxics. You can watch the 2022 launch event here. The campaign seeks to create new Wikipedia articles, strengthen and translate existing articles, and contribute to open access knowledge on the right to a healthy environment and other related topics. The global campaign ran for a month and saw over 700 participants contribute to over 4000 Wikipedia articles which are available in more than 35 languages. For more information, check out the Wiki page here.

HRC 49

During the 49th session of the Human Rights Council, the Special Rapporteur on human rights and the environment presented a thematic report on human rights and associated obligations related to toxic-free environments where people live, work, study and play. On 1 April, Ian Fry was appointed as Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights in the context of climate change, the mandate of which was established in Human Rights Council Resolution 48/14. The Special Rapporteur will, among other issues, “study and identify how the adverse effects of climate change, including sudden and slow onset disasters, affect the full and effective enjoyment of human rights and make recommendations on how to address and prevent these adverse effects”. The new mandate-holder is expected to play a key role in advancing global efforts to address the negative human rights impacts of climate change.

On 14 March, the High Commissioner delivered an opening statement at a Human Rights Council side event entitled “The Human Rights Impact of Climate Change: An International and Local Challenge”, organized jointly with the European Union and the Marshall Islands. This online event focused on the adverse impacts of climate change on cities and local communities and saw the participation of leaders from climate-affected communities, in addition to the EU Special Representative for Human Rights, Eamon Gilmore, and Marshall Islands Climate Envoy, Tina Stege. The High Commissioner paid tribute to the people at the heart of the climate crisis and highlighting the benefits of a human-rights-based approach to climate action. The High Commissioner, along with high level government officials and other representatives, also spoke at a high-level event on environmental human rights defenders co-organized with Sweden.

The Council also saw the adoption of resolution 49/11 on the right to work, sponsored by Egypt (in-coming Presidency of UNFCCC) and which references just transition. The resolution mandates a Human Rights Council panel in September 2022 during the 51st session of the Council, which will be followed by an analytical report on the future of the right to work.

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REGIONAL / FIELD UPDATES

Sixth Annual UNEP-OHCHR Workshop for Land and Environment Defenders

Attendants of the sixth annual workshop for Land and Environmental Defenders.

From 21 - 23 June 2022, UNEP and OHCHR Kenya convened the 6th annual Land and Environment Defenders (LED) Workshop under the theme “Strengthening commitments to protect land, ocean and environmental human rights defenders.” Over the years, the Kenya Network of LEDs has grown from a small group of individual LEDs and like-minded organizations to a national outfit that enjoys membership in the 47 counties of Kenya. The 6th annual workshop took place against the backdrop of the world desperately trying to emerge from the impact of the deadly pandemic but also the environmental implications from disposal of medical waste. In Kenya, just like in the rest of the globe, environmental issues have been neglected as priority is given to economic recovery – thus contributing to a reversal on gains made on tackling the triple planetary crises. LEDs globally have had to face several unprecedented challenges in their work.

As part of this workshop, UNEP and OHCHR aimed to highlight the work of defenders working on marine litter and plastic pollution. Increase in mega development projects and exploitation of the environment for mineral and other resources and manufacturing/industrialization is one of the major reasons for the spike in environmental incident reporting by LEDs nationally. For instance, lack of proper waste management strategies compromises marine ecosystems and thus the emergence of marine litter campaigners within the LED community. Attention was also placed on discussing the interlinkages of environmental justice, marine litter and ocean plastics pollution, and tabling potential solutions to contribute to addressing these injustices.

UNEA resolution 5/14 titled “End Plastic Pollution'' provides a starting point towards a legally binding treaty to end plastic pollution and may be an entry point for defenders working in marine space to contribute to intergovernmental efforts to end plastic pollution, including ocean plastics. It also underlines the need for better mechanisms to reinforce their work. Coastal communities have often been left out and marginalized in development decision-making within their communities, their participation and access to information on coastal area developments remains limited. Environmental and human rights defenders have been mobilizing these marginalized coastal communities to protect their environmental rights, especially on the elimination of marine litter and pollution. The resolution has also further strengthened the potential for defenders to hold plastic polluters accountable.

Moments captured at sixth annual workshop for Land and Environmental Defenders.

The workshop was also held against the backdrop of Kenya's “Blue Economy” campaign. A campaign to exploit the oceans for economic gain, this has the potential to add to the already existing menace of marine litter and pollution. The workshop brought together relevant stakeholders to align the international community’s commitments to support and defend the work of LEDs as well as promote and protect their rights.

The milestone Human Rights Council Resolution 40/11 “Recognizing the contribution of environmental human rights defenders to the enjoyment of human rights, environmental protection and sustainable development” and other policy developments including HRC Resolution 48/13 on the human right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment” informed discussions on how to deliver on states’ commitments to protect and support environmental human rights defenders in line with the Secretary-General’s Call to Action for Human Rights. One key outcome of the workshop was the election of a steering committee to take forward the newly formed Environmental Rights Organization (EROG) Network which comprises over 80 LEDs from East Africa and over 40 Civil Society Organizations working on Land and Environment rights.

EROG was formed to bring together LEDs under one umbrella to safely advocate for the land environmental rights as a united front. The network has been hosted by the Centre for Justice, Governance and Environmental Action (CJGEA) since 2017 when it was founded and will continue being hosted by CJGEA until it is formally registered and able to exist independently. The election of the office bearers is among the steps geared towards having the network exist on its own.

Collective Effort in South-East Asia to End Plastic Pollution

The UNEP Regional Office for Asia-Pacific organized a side event during the UN Ocean Conference titled “Collective Effort in South-East Asia to End Plastic Pollution”. The event was curated to promote a dialogue between all stakeholders involved and concerned by plastic pollution, specifically in the marine environment, and discuss collective efforts to tackle marine litter pollution, as well as to share the knowledge and findings of the SEA Circular survey. UNEP supports countries in the region to reduce solid waste in the marine environment, including supporting Myanmar’s national waste management strategy development, and city-wide waste management plans in Bangkok, Thailand and Mandalay, Myanmar.

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RESOURCES FOR THE COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE

Marine Litter, Plastic Pollution and Human Rights

These knowledge products provide information on various impacts of marine litter and plastic pollution from climate change to human rights and explore resources which integrate (or give context to) an environmental human rights-based approach to the problem of plastic pollution prevention and management.

Online courses:

In the past years, UNEP and its partners have published several new E-Learning Courses, focusing on pollution, marine litter and ocean governance. These courses expand on the sources of pollution as well as the existing legal frameworks to address these issues. See below the latest courses available on InforMEA:

Multimedia Resources:

Publications:

  • Monitoring Plastics in Rivers and Lakes: Guidelines for the Harmonization of Methodologies, June 2021. Monitoring programmes are needed to better assess the state of and trends in plastic pollution and achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals. This UNEP report provides guidelines for the assessment of plastic contamination in freshwater environments.
  • Addressing Marine Plastics: A Systemic Approach – Recommendations for Actions, December 2019. This UNEP report identifies gaps to address marine plastics at each value chain stage and recommends actions to be taken by different stakeholders to achieve a circular economy for plastics at the global level.
  • Key Messages : Human Rights and Hazardous Substances, July 2021. UN Environment Programme and The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights have issued Key Messages that highlight the human rights obligations and responsibilities of governments and other duty-bearers, such as businesses, to address biodiversity and habitat loss, prevent and remedy the harmful effects of hazardous substances, and respond to the COVID-19 crisis. These resources are available in all UN languages.

Special Rapporteurs Reports

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Appreciate

Credits:

Top to Bottom: UNEP/Angela Kariuki; Nazli Mozaffari /Unsplash; Dustan Woodhouse /Unsplash; UNEP/Angela Kariuki; Bady Abbas /Unsplash; UNEP/Cyril Villemain; UNEP/Stephen Teng'o; Centre for Justice, Governance and Environmental Action, 2022; Ashim D’Silva /Unsplah