A/HRC/43/53/Add.2 I. Introduction 1. The Special Rapporteur on the issue of human rights obligations relating to the enjoyment of a safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment, David R. Boyd, visited Norway from 12 to 23 September 2019, at the invitation of the Government. The purpose of the visit was to examine how well Norway has been implementing its human rights obligations related to environmental protection, to identify good practices and to investigate the environmental challenges the country faces. The Special Rapporteur expresses his appreciation for the warmth, generosity and strong dedication towards human rights and environmental protection of the people whom he encountered. 2. The role of the Special Rapporteur is to clarify and promote the implementation of human rights obligations relating to the enjoyment of the right to a safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment. One of the key tasks is to carry out country visits in order to prepare reports to the Human Rights Council describing good practices and challenges in the protection of human rights and the environment. Norway is his second such visit, following a visit to Fiji in December 2018 (A/HRC/43/53/Add.1). Fiji is a small island State that is already experiencing devastating impacts from climate change, while Norway is a major oil and gas producer whose fossil fuel exports contribute to the anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions responsible for climate change. 3. During his 12-day visit, the Special Rapporteur participated in more than 30 meetings with a wide range of people and organizations, including the Minister of Climate and Environment, the Minister of Agriculture and Food and the Attorney General; government officials from the Ministry of Climate and Environment, the Norwegian Environment Agency, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Agriculture and Food, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Local Government and Modernization, the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries and the Ministry of Transport; members of the parliamentary Standing Committee on Energy and Environment; two Supreme Court justices; the Parliamentary Ombudsman; and representatives of the Government Pension Fund Global, the Council on Ethics, the Norwegian National Human Rights Institution, civil society organizations and Norwegian businesses; as well as concerned citizens. He also spoke with a group of inspiring Norwegian youth who have been active in the school strike for climate movement, met with representatives of the Municipality of Oslo and went on a walking tour of some of the city’s green features. 4. For three days, the Special Rapporteur visited the Sámi communities of Kárášjohka/Karasjok (the home of the Sámi Parliament) and Guovdageaidnu/Kautokeino, spending time with representatives from the governing council of the Sámi Parliament, the Saami Council, Sámi reindeer herders, the International Centre for Reindeer Husbandry, the Sámi University of Applied Sciences and the Finnmark Estate. 5. The Special Rapporteur would like to thank the Government of Norway for its invitation. He is particularly grateful for the invaluable assistance received from the United Nations Development Programme, the Ministry of Climate and Environment, the Norwegian Environment Agency, the Sámi Parliament and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in organizing this visit. II. Legal and policy framework A. International law and policy 6. Norway has ratified all of the major international human rights treaties, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Norway is also a party to the International Labour Organization (ILO) Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention, 1989 (No. 169). Environmental protection is essential to fulfil many of the rights recognized in these agreements, including the rights to life, health, food, water, culture and development. Of critical importance is protecting the rights of those who may be most vulnerable to 3