Blogs

Fran Quigley Full disclosure: initially, I was not very excited about the announcement of the convening of the United Nations Secretary-General’s High-Level Panel on Access to Medicines. Every human rights advocate has learned to approach with…

Nicholas Caivano Global markets channel food—with ruthless efficiency—to the highest bidder, rather than to those who are most in need.1 While multinationals exercise unprecedented influence over the world’s food systems, there are few effective…

SDG Goals Kate Donald From a human rights perspective, there is little doubt that the new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are a huge improvement on their predecessors, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). However, there is one critical…

SDG Goals Carmel Williams  Accountability is a vital aspect of human rights. Without it, fundamental principles of human rights, including participation and transparency, are denied. With accountability comes trust—trust that duty bearers’…

Robust accountability processes and mechanisms are an essential component of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. In our recent SDG SERIES, contributors repeatedly called for human rights to underpin these processes and mechanisms. In…

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (second left); Christiana Figueres (left); Laurent Fabius (second right) and François Hollande (right) celebrate after the historic adoption of Paris Agreement on climate change. Alison Blaiklock  During the long…

Leigh Haynes People are experiencing the health consequences of climate change and the activities driving climate change every day—from extreme weather to breathing toxic air and drinking contaminated water. The human right to health cannot be…

Sustainable Student Action (SSA) at a divestment rally in the Seattle University Quad. (image credit Backbone Campaign) Alice Munro It is well understood that reducing global carbon emissions would generate immediate health benefits, from reducing…

Introduction by Mary Robinson I am delighted to welcome and launch this Health and Human Rights Journal series on climate change, COP21 and the right to health. The initiative is timely; on Monday October 19, 2015, climate negotiators will reconvene…

TPPA protests in Auckland, New Zealand (photo courtesy of Rhys Jones) Alexia Fourage Climate change threatens the right to health. According to the World Health Organization, climate change is already responsible for approximately 150,000…