Climate Vulnerable Forum Leaders Dialogue

Access to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment is the fundamental human right of every human being.

It is vital to every society; every economy; every community – and every one of us alive today and tomorrow.

Today's interlinked and accelerating crises of pollution, climate change, and biodiversity loss are the greatest threat to human rights of our era.

That means urgent action must be taken – now – to produce real and decisive change.

The Climate Vulnerable Forum has demonstrated its leadership in seeking ambitious action to address the devastating human rights impacts of climate change. The Forum's advocacy was critical to securing the 1.5° Celsius target in the Paris Agreement and remains essential to the struggle to keep 1.5° Celsius possible.

The Forum's Regional Dialogues this year included strong calls to increase ambition, address the human rights impacts of climate change, and mobilize resources.

And the Human Rights Council benefited from your support in adopting two major resolutions – recognizing the human right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment, and creating a new mandate for a Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights in the context of climate change.

I am confident that we share the same broad approach to the triple planetary threat that humanity faces.

Bold and ambitious climate action is an essential human rights obligation. Such action must be consistent with States' human rights obligations and reflect the voices of those most affected by climate change.

We need urgent, far-reaching and systemic reforms to end dependence on fossil fuels and eliminate greenhouse gas emissions.

We need every country to do its fair share. This includes climate finance that can meet the needs of affected communities, and equitably sharing knowledge and technologies.

People whose rights are badly impacted must be able to seek justice and redress for the loss and damage caused by climate change – including for the loss of cultural heritage and other non-economic damages.

The Declaration you will adopt today is an opportunity to advance many of these vital issues.

At this COP, we face a crucial window for real policy changes that can pull the world back from the rapidly growing planet-wide catastrophe that faces us,

We need a real commitment to human rights-based climate action.

My thanks go to this distinguished Forum for sharing our efforts to stand up for human rights, by ensuring a safe and stable climate, for present and future generations.