Actions of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights

The African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights sets out a wide spectrum of human rights, including, in Article 24, the right of all peoples to “a general satisfactory environment favourable to their development”, and in Article 16(1), the right of every individual “to enjoy the best attainable state of physical and mental health.” The Charter established …   Continue readingActions of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights

AKOBEN, Community Environmental Awareness Programme

AKOBEN is a programme that makes environmental law and administrative processes more accessible to communities that do not have the capacity to understand the legal system. It uses a five colour rating scheme to assess the performance of mining and manufacturing operations in a manner that is easily understood by the public. Ratings are annually disclosed to the general …   Continue readingAKOBEN, Community Environmental Awareness Programme

Indian Minister of the Environment and Forests’ Rejection of Application to Mine the Niyamgiri Hills in Odisha, India

In January 2014, India’s Minister of Environment and Forests (MEF) blocked an application by Vedanta Resources (Vedanta), a London-based mining company, to clear a forest area to mine for bauxite in the Niyamgiri hills in the eastern Indian state of Odisha. The Dongria and Kutia tribes inhabit the areas surrounding the Niyamgiri hills and believe their god lives in the …   Continue readingIndian Minister of the Environment and Forests’ Rejection of Application to Mine the Niyamgiri Hills in Odisha, India

Local Multi-Stakeholder Platforms, Mongolia

The Asia Foundation is a nonprofit international development organisation headquartered in San Francisco and with a network of offices in 18 Asian countries, including Mongolia, and in Washington, DC. The Asia Foundation’s current environmental program, Engaging Stakeholders for Environmental Conservation (ESEC), was initiated in August 2010 to address the key …   Continue readingLocal Multi-Stakeholder Platforms, Mongolia

Sustainability School Programme, Uganda

The National Association of Professional Environmentalists (NAPE) is committed to sustainable solutions to Uganda’s most challenging environmental problems through, among other things, monitoring government actions, conducting research, providing educational materials, and organizing affected communities. Since 2010, NAPE has conducted a Sustainability School Programme …   Continue readingSustainability School Programme, Uganda

Environmental Management Committee (EMC ): A Joint Monitoring Body of Civil Society, Government and the Private Sector in South Africa

In 2008 an Australian company, Coal of Africa (CoAL), applied for a mining right in South Africa on land less than seven kilometres from the boundaries of a UNESCO recognised World Heritage Site called the Mapungubwe Cultural Landscape. A civil society organisation called Save Mapungubwe Coalition formed and undertook a wide variety of strategies that included engaging …   Continue readingEnvironmental Management Committee (EMC ): A Joint Monitoring Body of Civil Society, Government and the Private Sector in South Africa