This event was co-organized by Dominicans for Justice and Peace with our partners: Congregation of Our Lady of Good Shepherd, Franciscans International, VIVAT International, Swiss Catholic Lenten Campaign, Edmund Rice International, and the Geneva Environment Network.
Climate change poses a profound threat to human rights, disproportionately affects vulnerable populations—threatening their access to clean water, food, health, and shelter, and event their right to life and culture identity. Recognizing this, the UN Human Rights Council continues to address the adverse impacts of climate change for the enjoyment of human rights. At the current 60th session of the UN HRC, the UN Secretary General presents his synthesis report on “Just Transition and human rights” aimed to identify the opportunities, best practices, actionable solutions, challenges and barriers relevant to a just transition and the full realization of human rights for all people.
This report arrives at a pivotal moment, as the international community prepares for the 30th Conference of the Parties (COP30) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), set to take place in Belém, Brazil. Just transition is expected to be a central theme of the negotiations, reflecting growing global consensus on the need for climate action that is both ambitious and socially equitable.
A just transition seeks to ensure that the shift to a low-carbon economy protects workers, communities, and marginalized groups from economic and social displacement, while promoting sustainable livelihoods. COP30 offers a critical platform to elevate these interconnected concerns, especially as the Amazon region embodies both ecological fragility and socio-political complexity. By integrating human rights frameworks into climate negotiations and prioritizing just transition strategies, COP30 can catalyze global commitments that not only curb emissions but also uphold dignity, equity, and resilience for all.
In anticipation for COP30, Catholic Bishops from the Global South, representing SECAM (Africa), FABC (Asia), and CELAM (Latin America and the Caribbean), are calling for climate justice and ecological conversion ahead of COP30. They are urging for bold action, including phasing out fossil fuels, fulfilling the Paris Agreement, and addressing the “ecological debt” owed by wealthy nations. Their message, titled “A Call for Climate Justice and the Common Home,” emphasizes the need for a radical transformation of the global economic system to prioritize people and the planet.