Implementing Actor: International Organization



Bali Guidelines for the Development of National Legislation on Access to Information, Public Participation, and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters

The Bali Guidelines were adopted by the Governing Council of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) in its decision SS.XI/5, part A of 26 February 2010. They are a set of 26 voluntary guidelines that aim to provide general guidance to States on promoting “the effective implementation of their commitments to Principle 10 of the 1992 Rio Declaration on Environment and …   Continue readingBali Guidelines for the Development of National Legislation on Access to Information, Public Participation, and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters

United Nations Environment Programme’s Initiatives on Human Rights

The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) has recognized, developed and raised awareness of the linkages between the environment and the enjoyment of human rights through a number of initiatives. For example, in December 2009, UNEP jointly organized with the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) a high-level meeting on the topic of the future of human rights …   Continue readingUnited Nations Environment Programme’s Initiatives on Human Rights

UNICEF’s Initiatives to Protect Children’s Rights to a Healthy Environment

According to UNICEF, its “approach to environmental sustainability aims to: reduce the effects of climate change and environmental degradation on children’s rights” and “identify and enhance opportunities to advance the rights of children which arise from global and local attention on climate change and environmental degradation.” To achieve these objectives, …   Continue readingUNICEF’s Initiatives to Protect Children’s Rights to a Healthy Environment

Sustainable Island Resource Management Mechanism Project

The Sustainable Island Resource Management Mechanism (SIRMM) project, which was implemented from 2008 until 2013, sought to ensure the sustainability and maintenance of island ecosystem integrity, health and function through integrated planning and management of island resources. It also sought to strengthen capacities at the systemic, institutional and individual level …   Continue readingSustainable Island Resource Management Mechanism Project

ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights Workshop on Human Rights, Environment and Climate Change

The ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) was established as the human rights body of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 2009 to promote and protect human rights and fundamental freedoms of the peoples of ASEAN. The AICHR organised a Workshop on Human Rights, Environment and Climate Change in Yangon, Myanmar from 13 to 15 September …   Continue readingASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights Workshop on Human Rights, Environment and Climate Change

Asian Judges Symposium on Environmental Decision Making, the Rule of Law, and Environmental Justice and the Asian Judges Network on Environment

In July 2010, the Asian Development Bank hosted the first of three Asian Judges Symposiums on Environmental Decision Making, the Rule of Law, and Environmental Justice. Around 120 senior judges, environment ministry officials, members of civil society, and experts in environmental law discussed ways to promote environment protection through effective environmental …   Continue readingAsian Judges Symposium on Environmental Decision Making, the Rule of Law, and Environmental Justice and the Asian Judges Network on Environment

Regional Instrument on the Rights of Access to Information, Participation and Justice in Environmental Matters in Latin America and the Caribbean

During the Rio+20 UN Conference on Sustainable Development, ten States from the Latin American and the Caribbean (LAC) region subscribed to a Declaration on Principle 10. By 2014, nine more countries had signed the Declaration, representing more than half of all LAC countries. The signatory countries, which include Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Jamaica, expressed their …   Continue readingRegional Instrument on the Rights of Access to Information, Participation and Justice in Environmental Matters in Latin America and the Caribbean

European Union’s Implementation of the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights to Protect the Environment

The EU 2011 Corporate Social Responsibility Strategy endorsed the Guiding Principles. EU institutions and EU member States have made commitments and efforts to support their implementation relating to activities that may impact on the environment. For example, the European Commission (EC) has prepared sector guidelines on implementing the Guiding Principles, including for …   Continue readingEuropean Union’s Implementation of the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights to Protect the Environment

Project on Reducing Climate Change Risks to Water Resources in Honduras

According to the UN Development Programme (UNDP), Honduras is one of the most vulnerable countries in Latin America to climate change, with its water resources particularly at risk. Moreover, population growth has led to the increased habitation of low-income populations in areas prone to increased landslides and flooding from climate change-related weather events. This …   Continue readingProject on Reducing Climate Change Risks to Water Resources in Honduras

International Union for Conservation of Nature Resolution on the Child’s Right to Nature and a Healthy Environment

The World Conservation Congress of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) adopted Resolution 101 on the Child’s Right to Connect with Nature and to a Healthy Environment in September 2012. According to the IUCN, the World Conservation Congress is the world’s largest conservation event and is held every four years with the goal of improving how …   Continue readingInternational Union for Conservation of Nature Resolution on the Child’s Right to Nature and a Healthy Environment

Whakatane Assessments, Rights-Based Assessments of Protected Areas

Whakatane Assessments are part of a larger programme called the Whakatane Mechanism, which is implemented by the IUCN Commission on Environmental, Economic and Social Policy (CEESP), the Forest Peoples Programme, and other indigenous peoples’ organisations (IPOs). According to IUCN, the Whakatane Mechanism “is a process to assess, address and redress situations, …   Continue readingWhakatane Assessments, Rights-Based Assessments of Protected Areas

Faciladores Judiciales (Judicial Facilitators)

The Organisation of American States (OAS) began implementing a pilot of the judicial facilitators programme in Nicaragua in the late 1990s and it has grown to a well-established initiative in multiple Latin American countries. The objective of the programme is to improve access to justice among local communities where there have historically been barriers to access to …   Continue readingFaciladores Judiciales (Judicial Facilitators)

Aarhus Centres

In an effort to support the implementation of the Aarhus Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters by providing members of the public with practical resources to exercise their environmental rights under the Aarhus Convention, the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) …   Continue readingAarhus Centres

UN Economic Commission for Europe, Aarhus Clearinghouse for Environmental Democracy

The Aarhus Clearinghouse is a forum to provide information on good practices relevant to the public’s right to access environmental information, participate in environmental decision-making, and achieve justice on environmental matters, areas that are covered by the Aarhus Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice …   Continue readingUN Economic Commission for Europe, Aarhus Clearinghouse for Environmental Democracy

(Aarhus) Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters

The Aarhus Convention is a regional instrument on the rights to access of information, participation, and access to justice, enshrined in Principle 10 of the 1992 Rio Declaration. Adopted in June 1998, the Aarhus Convention states that in order to “contribute to the protection of the right of every person of present and future generations to live in an environment …   Continue reading(Aarhus) Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters

(Espoo) Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context

The Espoo Convention, which entered into force in 1997, obligates its Parties to assess the environmental impacts of certain activities that may cause transboundary environmental harm at an early stage of planning. The Convention also obligates States to notify and consult with affected States with respect to certain proposed projects that are likely to have a significant …   Continue reading(Espoo) Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context