More climate-related cases will be brought against governments, businesses following new UN report: Analysts

A new report by a United Nations body detailing member states’ obligations to protect children's rights against environmental degradation will push more young people to bring on climate-related legal cases against parties, analysts said on Tuesday (Aug 29).

They were speaking a day after the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child for the first time affirmed children’s right to live in a clean, healthy and sustainable environment with a fresh interpretation of a treaty ratified by all UN members except the United States.

The updated Convention on the Rights of the Child calls environmental degradation, including the climate crisis, "a form of structural violence against children", and states that governments need to find ways to include opportunities for children to participate in environmental decision-making.

It also calls for the removal of barriers to children taking legal and class action against businesses and governments that are not taking enough significant action on the environment.

“Cases are in the works around the world and we’ll undoubtedly see more such cases being brought and won as a result of this report. So it is really a very, very important step,” said Dr Frederica Perera, Professor of Public Health at Columbia University.

The report adds a note of urgency and strengthens the arguments of children who bring on legal proceedings against parties, Prof Perera told CNA938’s Asia First.

There have been many instances of children taking governments to court and having difficulty in making their cases stick, noted Professor Bronwyn Hayward from the University of Canterbury’s Department of Political Science and International Relations.

“This now provides a pathway. There's a clear suggestion that governments should provide opportunities for children and young people to remedy their disputes locally, and then they can escalate this,” she told CNA’s Asia Now.

“We are starting to see the way in which the United Nations can provide a framework for legal accountability as well as moral encouragement for governments to do the right thing by their children and future generations,” she added.

The fresh analysis of the treaty adds weight to the voice of children because it comes just weeks after a landmark court ruling in Montana in favour of a group of youths who accused the western US state of failing to uphold the state's constitution guarantee of a right to a clean and healthful environment, the analysts said.

WHY CHILDREN ARE VULNERABLE

About 16,000 children from more than 100 countries shared their experiences on environmental degradation and climate change during the two-year drafting period for the guidelines.

“Children and youth have called repeatedly on us adults to act on climate change and air pollution, both of these largely caused by fossil fuel emissions. And they're finally being heard," Prof Perera said.

Despite much of the focus of the health consequences of climate change being measured in terms of excess adult deaths, it is the young who have been bearing its brunt for many years, she said.

Experiencing severe weather events and displacement results in mental health problems like post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and depression in children, she noted, adding that in 2020, nearly 10 million children were displaced globally as a result of weather-related events.

Even when children have not directly experienced a climate-related shock, climate change anxiety is increasing the risk of mental health problems in the young, she said. Citing the results of a global study released two years ago, she said that nearly 60 per cent of people aged 16 to 25 reported feeling extremely worried about climate change. Almost half of them said their daily lives were negatively affected by these feelings.

Children are experiencing a triple planetary crisis – the climate crisis, the collapse of biodiversity and serious environmental poverty, Prof Hayward said.

Dr Ian Fry, UN special rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights in the context of climate change, noted that the majority of the international committee has ignored the fact that environmental degradation has an “enormous impact” on children.

“This needs to be highlighted and brought to the attention of governments and businesses. And this is a critical part of what this report will do,” he told CNA’s Asia First.

Citing figures from UNICEF, he said that over 820 million children are currently exposed to heat waves and 400 million children are exposed to cyclones.

HOW THE REPORT COULD HAVE BEEN BETTER

The report is “significant” because it shows another aspect of human rights law which is reminding governments that for children to be able to enjoy their fundamental human rights, climate change and environmental issues need to be addressed, said Mr Grip Bueta, fellow at Parabukas, a consultancy focused on environment-related laws and policies.

However, the document could have been more specific in its recommendations, he said, noting that among its criticisms is that it could have been more forceful in the way it tells governments and businesses to respect and protect children's rights.

Dr Fry said that the report uses “bureaucratic” language that needs to be worked into a way that everybody can understand.

“It probably doesn't go far enough. It really doesn't state clear obligations on governments and business to really take strong action. I think more needs to be done,” he said. 

The report is a “very important first step” in getting all countries to agree that governments have a legal responsibility to ensure that children can grow up with clean water, in an environment that protects them, said Prof Hayward, noting that they may potentially face consequences in court potentially if this responsibility is not met.

“While it doesn't go far enough, (it) is a very important first step and a big journey to make the world better for children and young people,” she said.