Reinterpreting human rights in the climate crisis: Moving beyond economic growth and (un)sustainable development to a future with degrowth

Abstract

The UN General Assembly has recently recognised that unsustainable development and climate change ‘constitute some of the most pressing and serious threats to the ability of present and future generations to effectively enjoy all human rights’. International human rights law is evolving to obligate States to tackle climate change, including through mitigation measures. At the same time, economic growth and sustainable development are often upheld to underpin the realisation of human rights. However, economic growth is a significant contributor to climate change, which, in turn, harms human rights. This article argues that these contradictions require a recalibrated interpretation of economic growth under international human rights law, in particular in terms of; (i) the nature of the relationship between human rights and sustained economic growth in Global North States, which disproportionately contribute to climate change, and consequentially (ii) the degree of alignment of the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development with international human rights law. Different visions are abounding for ecologically sustainable social and economic life. This includes proposals for degrowth which centre on a planned reduction in consumption and use of resources, especially in the Global North. This article uses degrowth as a case study to argue that such proposals provide crucial insights to support the interpretation of, and pathways for, the realisation of human rights within planetary boundaries, and to shape a rights-based, and sustainable post-2030 development landscape.