Recording of the Course:
Course Description:
This course looked at the interplay between human rights and climate change law. Participants ascertained how human rights law obligations can support action to tackle the climate emergency at the national and regional level. The course furthermore considered how human rights law may support internationally coordinated action to address specific challenges associated with climate change, like that of people displacement. At the same time, the course looked at the challenges that climate change poses to the implementation and enforcement of human rights law, and at the solutions that are being devised in order to overcome these challenges.
Recommended Reading:
- UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and the Environment, ‘Report of the Special Rapporteur on the Issue of Human Rights Obligations Relating to the Enjoyment of a Safe, Clean, Healthy and Sustainable Environment’ (2019) A/74/161.
- UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and the Environment, ‘Report of the Special Rapporteur on the Issue of Human Rights Obligations Relating to the Enjoyment of a Safe, Clean, Healthy and Sustainable Environment’ (2016) A/HRC/31/52.
- UNEP, ‘Climate Change and Human Rights’ (2015) <http://www.unenvironment.org/resources/report/climate-change-and-human-rights>.
- Annalisa Savaresi, ‘Human Rights and Climate Change’ in Tuula Honkonen and Seita Romppanen (eds), International Environmental Law-making and Diplomacy Review 2018 (University of Eastern Finland 2019) <https://ssrn.com/abstract=3327981>.
Instructors:
Annalisa Savaresi is an Associate Professor in International Environmental Law at the University of Eastern Finland, and Senior Lecturer in Environmental Law at the University of Stirling, Scotland. Her research focuses on the climate change and on climate change law, emissions from land uses, and rights-based approaches to environmental law and policy. She currently serves as Director for Europe for the Global Network on Human Rights and the Environment. She is Associate Editor of the Review of European, Comparative and International Law and member of the IUCN World Commission on Environmental Law and of the Women’s Energy and Climate Law Network. She has published extensively on the relationship between human rights and climate change law.
Margaretha Wewerinke-Singh is an Assistant Professor of Public International Law at Leiden University. Her research focuses on the role of law in addressing sustainable development challenges. Her recent book, State Responsibility, Climate Change and Human Rights (Hart Publishing) explains when and where State action related to climate change may amount to a violation of human rights. Margaretha has published extensively on the relationship between human rights and climate change law and currently serves as Deputy Director for Europe for the Global Network on Human Rights and the Environment.
Sebastien Duyck is a senior attorney for CIEL’s Climate & Energy Program. His work focuses primarily on promoting the integration of human rights and public participation in climate governance and in strengthening accountability for climate harms. Sébastien leads CIEL’s engagement with UN human rights institutions seeking greater consideration and scrutiny by these bodies of the duties of States to prevent human rights harms caused by climate change or climate responses and to promote environmental democracy. He also co-facilitates the Human Rights and Climate Change Working Group, convening civil society organizations advocating for the promotion and respect of human rights under the UN climate change regime and in the implementation of the Paris Agreement.
