Maryna Dorash

Interlinkages between Environmental and Human right law Maryna Dorash

Essay from the year 2014 in the subject Law - European and International Law, Intellectual Properties, grade: 2,0, Ruhr-University of Bochum, language: English, abstract: The links between human rights and environmental law is not very obvious initially. At first glance, it is difficult to see what could possibly tie freedom of speech, freedom of religion and freedom of the press to that of climate control. When examining the human rights issues to environmental concerns, it is readily apparent that one impacts the other. Meaning, there is an obvious connection. Human rights globally are basically the acknowledgement by government or non-government entities that humans have the right to exist and that right needs to be protected. A human's place of existence is his or her surroundings or environment. So, it follows reasonably that the lack of any means by which a human can exist or any diminishment of environmental resources necessary to continue to exist in his or her environment would be a violation of a human right so the environment must be protected. Using climate change as an example since it seems to get the most attention and changing most quickly internationally the international law link gets a little clearer. But that is just the tip of the quickly-melting iceberg. Officially making this lawful association between these two areas opens the door for a plethora of proposed guidelines, interpretations of guidelines, challenges, lawsuits, civil rights actions, enforcement, etc. With expansion or new associations or combinations of previously disassociated areas, activity revolving around these new frontiers will undoubtedly continue to grow. Environmental human rights cover a lot of areas, so, for the sake of clarity and, hopefully, understandability, the focus here will be on climate control. In addition, the impact climate control has had, is having, and will have on human rights issues are monumental and deserve the extra attention. The followi