David Boyd, the UN's independent expert on human rights and the environment, has warned in a report to the Human Rights Council (HRC) that humanity is overstepping the boundaries of the planet. The report calls for “an urgent rethinking of the business and economic paradigms that have brought civilization to the brink of ruin.”
The report of the Special Rapporteur on the issue of human rights obligations relating to the enjoyment of a safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment is entitled 'Business, planetary boundaries and the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment' (A/HRC/55/43). The report calls for “a voluntary normative framework to clarify States' obligations for businesses to respect human rights and protect the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment from harm caused by business.'' It points out that “this is insufficient.”
The report calls for “systemic and transformative change” to achieve a just and sustainable future. These include new business models, climate and environmental laws that incorporate the planet's limits, fiscal policies that internalize externalities and reduce inequality, and social goals that replace gross domestic product (GDP) and limitless growth. .
The Special Rapporteur stresses that natural resources are being consumed six times faster than the Earth can sustain them. “If everyone consumed like the average American, we would need four more planets to provide our resources and absorb our waste,” Boyd wrote.
The independent experts accuse governments of failing to “adequately prevent, investigate, punish and redress climate and environmental impacts on human rights.” Highlights greenwashing, which undermines scientific fact and enables corruption and the use of litigation to “silence debate”, among the most destructive impacts of corporations on the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment doing.
At the same time, Boyd highlighted the contradictions facing the international community in allowing increased use of energy and materials in the Global South while reducing the ecological footprint of slowing climate change. Pointed out. Rich countries “need to take the lead in reducing their own footprint and financing sustainable and equitable growth in the Global South,” he argues.
The Special Rapporteur has made a number of recommendations to states in support of prioritizing benefits rather than profits. Among other things, he calls for the adoption of human rights due diligence laws, rights-based climate and environmental laws, and a new business paradigm that prioritizes social interests over shareholder interests.
In a policy brief accompanying the report, Boyd details the devastating impact of big business on the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment. Two additional reports of his recorded the Special Rapporteur’s visits to Botswana (A/HRC/55/43/Add.2) and Chile (A/HRC/55/43/Add.1). , where he investigated the implementation of clean rights. Build healthy and sustainable environments, explore challenges and identify good practices.
The report was published in January 2024 ahead of the 55th session of the Human Rights Council, which will be held from 26 February to 5 April 2024.
The Special Rapporteur is independent from any government or organization. They serve in a private capacity and do not receive a salary for their work. [Publication: Business, Planetary Boundaries, and the Right to a Clean, Healthy and Sustainable Environment] [Publication: Visit to Botswana] [Publication: Visit to Chile] [Publication: Prioritizing Profits over People and Planet: The Devastating Impacts of Large Businesses on the Right to a Clean, Healthy and Sustainable Environment] [Annual Thematic Reports by Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and the Environment] [UN News Story]
