CLIMATE CHANGE AS BACKFIRE ON HUMAN RIGHTS.

Climate change
This is a long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns. Natural activities like change in
the sun's activity or large volcanic eruptions contribute to such shifts, but indeed such
contribution is very minor towards causation of the observed climate change recently. Hence
mostly climate change is driven by human activities as it is evident since the 18th Century
human activities have been the leading factor catalyzing climate change through the burning of
fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas.1 Major activities include agriculture, industries operations,
deforestation and others. Statistics shows approximately 1.1°C of warming in 19th Century was
the outcome of the emissions of greenhouse gases from human activities, which exacerbate the
situation for the future patterns of the global temperature. Now the world is fighting to ensure
the global warming seize on 1.5°C and non above. 2 Due to its repercussions for the current and
future generations climate change becomes a worldwide phenomenon.
Climate change is evidenced throughout due to various changes occasioned in the of earth for
years, now we are watching rising of sea level at a high rate, changing of precipitation patterns,
extreme weather events, acidic ocean and other features accompanied with it. A vivid evidence
can be depicted from ice cores drawn from Greenland, Antarctica, and tropical mountain
glaciers which shows that Earth’s climate responds to changes in greenhouse levels,
furthermore evidence reveals that current warming is occurring roughly 10 times faster than
the average rate of warming after an ice age.3
Human Rights
These are rights which regardless of our nationality, sex, national or ethnic origin, color,
religion, language or any other status we have them simply because we exist as human beings.
They are universal inalienable, indivisible and interdependent as recognized in the International
Bill of Rights.4 Right to life, food, education, work, health liberty and others are among of those
rights which makes the human life prevail on the Earth.
Climate change and Human Rights
Climate change is a human rights issue, because it affects the fundamental rights of people such
as right to life, health, food, water, and an adequate standard of living. Climate change can
threaten the enjoyment of these rights by increasing the risks of droughts, floods, famine,
disease, displacement, and conflict. Climate change can also exacerbate existing inequalities

1
https;//www.un.org/en/climate change [accessed on 28th November 2023 at 2.38 pm]
2
https://www.ipcc.ch/2021/08/09/ar6-wg1-20210809-pr/[accessed on 28th November 2023 at 2.49 pm]
3
https://climate.nasa.gov/evidence//[accessed on 30th November 2023 at 3.49 pm]
4
Hhtps://www.ohchr.org/en (Includes The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, International Covenant on Civil
and Political Right, International Covenant for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights) [accessed on 29th November
2023 at 2.15 pm]
and vulnerabilities, especially for those who are already marginalized and disadvantaged, such
as women, children, indigenous peoples, and people living in poverty.

Backfire of Climate Change on Human Rights

Climate change can have serious repercussion on the environment, such as rising temperatures,
melting ice, sea level rise, extreme weather events, biodiversity loss, floods, earthquakes and
others. This leads to the great negative impact to the environment which humans are active
agents to the same hence violation of human rights.
From such impacts, different rights are in the hinges to be violated such as right to life through
displacement and deaths caused by floods droughts and other related catastrophes. Right to
health, food, water, self-determination and proper housing are also among of the rights which
are in the edge of repercussion due to red alarm on food security, scarce of water, decline of
natural resources, displacement and homeless respectively.
Lastly, States and World acting and decision making Organs/Organizations needs to
necessitates climate change as phenomenon aggravate human rights and hence adopt
measures aiming at ensuring the world remains to be the safe place for human life. 5Hence it is
the right time climate change to be taken as a human right issue to ease the pains to most
vulnerable communities affected by it.

5
https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-offices/2014/09/23/remarks-president-un-climate-change-
summit‘’we are the first generation to feel the impact of climate change and the last generation can do something
about it.’’