A safe, clean, healthy, and sustainable environment is integral to the full enjoyment of a wide range of human rights, including the rights to life, health, food, water, and sanitation. Without a healthy environment, we are unable to fulfil our aspirations or even live at a level commensurate with minimum standards of human dignity. At the same time, protecting human rights helps to protect the environment. There exist numerous local, national, regional and global laws and instruments on our human rights in the environment. Know your rights and exercise them to help ensure that duties, obligations and responsibilities are being fulfilled.
For more information visit UNEP’s pages on environmental rights.