A human rights-based approach to loss and damage under the climate change regime

Climate change has been labelled the human rights challenge of the twenty-first century. Loss and damage resulting from climate change, in particular, poses a severe threat to the human rights of affected communities. However, the international response to climate change under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has thus far insufficiently taken human rights into account, contributing to policy outcomes inadequate to protecting communities affected by loss and damage. This article proposes the adoption of a human rights-based approach as a strategic tool for policymakers to strengthen the international response to loss and damage. The approach builds on the existing obligations of Parties under international and regional human rights treaties and provides a method for systematically integrating human rights that goes beyond mere mainstreaming of human rights. Specifically, the article identifies opportunities for anchoring such an approach under the Warsaw International Mechanism and key mechanisms for the implementation of the Paris Agreement. Conversely, it considers the integration of loss and damage in the work of relevant human rights bodies, specifically the United Nations Human Rights Council and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. Key policy insights Adopting a human rights-based approach can be an important strategic tool for policymakers to strengthen the international response on loss and damage. Although the Paris Rulebook is weak on human rights, Parties are bound by their existing obligations under international and regional human rights treaties they have ratified and should be guided by the Paris Agreement’s preamble. The Paris Rulebook sidelines Article 8 of the Paris Agreement, but loss and damage still plays an important role in the Transparency Framework and Global Stocktake. There is a significant opportunity for the Warsaw International Mechanism’s Executive Committee to develop human rights guidelines for loss and damage policies and actions, as well as guidelines for conducting human rights impact assessments, and to set up a specialized body to monitor compliance.