A/HRC/34/49 I. Introduction 1. In its resolution 28/11, the Human Rights Council encouraged the Special Rapporteur to promote the realization of human rights obligations relating to the environment, continuing to give particular emphasis to practical solutions. In 2015, the Special Rapporteur presented a report to the Council (A/HRC/31/53) recommending methods of implementing the obligations, and he followed up on many of the recommendations in 2016. 2. For example, in partnership with the United Nations Environment Programme, he began a series of regional judicial workshops on rights-based approaches to environmental issues, with the first held in South Africa in April 2016 and the second planned to be held in Brazil in 2017. He helped the United Nations Institute for Training and Research to develop an online course entitled “Human rights and environmental protection for sustainable development”. He also worked with the Universal Rights Group and other partners to prepare a web portal, environment-rights.org, with resources for environmental human rights defenders. In 2017, the final full year of his mandate, the Special Rapporteur intends to implement another recommendation by preparing practical guidelines, or guiding principles, on the human rights obligations relating to the environment. To inform the preparation of the guidelines, he will engage in consultations with Governments and other stakeholders. 3. In its resolution 28/11, the Human Rights Council also encouraged the Special Rapporteur to continue to clarify the human rights obligations relating to the environment. In the present report, the Special Rapporteur examines the obligations relating to the conservation and sustainable use of ecosystems and biological diversity (biodiversity). In preparation for the report, he held an expert meeting and a public consultation from 20 to 22 September 2016. He also attended the 2016 World Conservation Congress and the thirteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity. He sent a questionnaire to States and other interested stakeholders, which elicited over 60 responses, and he examined statements and reports by international organizations, human rights mechanisms, scholars and other sources. 4. Section II explains that biodiversity is necessary for the enjoyment of a wide range of human rights and that the loss of biodiversity threatens the enjoyment of those rights. Section III outlines the human rights obligations relating to the protection of biodiversity. Section IV concludes with recommendations on the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity to protect the full enjoyment of human rights. II. The dependence of human rights on biodiversity 5. The full enjoyment of human rights, including the rights to life, health, food and water, depends on the services provided by ecosystems. The provision of ecosystem services depends on the health and sustainability of ecosystems, which in turn depend on biodiversity. The full enjoyment of human rights thus depends on biodiversity, and the degradation and loss of biodiversity undermine the ability of human beings to enjoy their human rights.1 1 The present report focuses on the value of biodiversity to human beings, but the Special Rapporteur notes that the components of biodiversity also have intrinsic value that may not be captured by a human rights perspective. 3