In his report to the Human Rights Council (HRC), UN independent expert on human rights and the environment David Boyd warns that humanity is exceeding planetary boundaries. The report calls for “an urgent rethinking of the business and economic paradigms that have pushed civilization to the brink of disaster.”

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 titled, ‘Business, Planetary Boundaries, and the Right to a Clean, Healthy and Sustainable Environment’ (A/HRC/55/43). It points to the “inadequacies of voluntary normative frameworks for ensuring that businesses respect human rights and clarifies State obligations to protect the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment from harms caused by businesses.”

The report calls for “systemic and transformative changes” to achieve a just and sustainable future. These include new business models, climate and environmental laws that incorporate planetary limits, fiscal policies that internalize externalities and reduce inequality, and societal goals that replace gross domestic product (GDP) and limitless growth.

The Special Rapporteur underscores that natural resources are being consumed six times faster than the planet can sustain. “If everyone consumed like the average American, we would need another four Earths to supply the resources and absorb the wastes,” Boyd writes.

The independent expert calls out governments for having failed to adequately “prevent, investigate, punish and redress climate and environmental impacts on human rights.” Among some of the most destructive impacts of businesses on the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, he highlights greenwashing, which undermines scientific facts and enables corruption and the use of lawsuits to “silence debate.”

At the same time, Boyd points to a paradox facing the international community in the imperative of reducing the ecological footprint to slow climate change while allowing for increased energy and material use in the Global South. Wealthy countries, he argues, “must take the lead in reducing their footprints and financing sustainable and equitable growth in the global South.”

The Special Rapporteur offers numerous recommendations for states to support the prioritization of benefits, not profits. Among others, he calls for the adoption of human rights due diligence legislation, rights-based climate and environmental laws, and new business paradigms which prioritize societal benefits over shareholder profits.

In a policy brief accompanying the report, Boyd details the devastating impacts of large businesses on the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment. Two additional reports document the Special Rapporteur’s visits to Botswana (A/HRC/55/43/Add.2) and Chile (A/HRC/55/43/Add.1) where he examined the implementation of the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment to investigate challenges and identify good practices.

The reports were published in January 2024, ahead of the 55th session of the Human Rights Council, taking place from 26 February to 5 April 2024.

Special Rapporteurs are independent of any government or organization. They serve in their individual capacity and receive no 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]