Climate change and human rights

Last month, a Peruvian farmer called on German energy company RWE to pay its fair share to protect his home from imminent flooding caused by a glacial lake melted by global warming.  “For a long time, my father and I have thought that those who cause climate change should help solve the problems it causes,” Saul Luciano Lliuya told the Guardian. He holds that RWE, one of Europe’s largest emitters of carbon, has contributed to the greenhouse effect causing glacial melting that endangers his home, along with many others in the city of Huaraz.
Lliuya’s story illustrates the tangible human impacts of climate change, which can easily be forgotten amidst high-level debates over carbon emissions reductions. This is a key year for climate action by both governments and companies. In the lead-up to the much-anticipated Paris climate talks, states are preparing their pledges, and business leaders are developing their approach at meetings such as the Business & Climate Summit this week.  Despite devastating impacts of climate change on the rights to health, water, food, housing, livelihood and life, human rights have been on the sidelines of these discussions.

Bringing human rights into the center of discussions would reinforce the call on states and businesses to step up their game. International experts, including former president of Ireland and United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mary Robinson, have recognized that a human rights focus would strengthen the Paris climate deal.  The International Bar Association’s Task Force on Climate Change Justice and Human Rightsalso established the links between climate justice and corporate responsibility, recommending clear steps for companies.
As Unilever’s CEO Paul Polman puts it, “We can only solve the immense climate issues we face if we also address the human dimension.”  However, climate change and human rights are addressed in siloes even within many of the most advanced companies.  Making the link clear would allow internal human rights and environmental (or sustainability) champions to push for bolder action within their companies and deliver stronger benefits for the most vulnerable.