A/HRC/43/30 communities that rely on forests, fisheries and other natural ecosystems for their survival and cultural life are deeply affected by damaged ecosystems.64 45. The effects of environmental degradation on traditional livelihoods, including food and water scarcity and property destruction, expose girls to greater risks, to exploitation and to harmful practices such as child marriage. Girls are also more likely to miss school because of having to care for elderly relatives and fetch water due to climate change stresses. 65 During natural disasters, children with disabilities may be left behind, as humanitarian responses are often not adapted to their specific needs. III. International legal obligations 46. Under the human rights framework, States have clear human rights obligations to prevent the adverse impacts of environmental degradation on the effective enjoyment of all human rights, including children’s rights. More than 155 States have recognized a legal obligation to respect, protect and fulfil the right to a healthy environment. In more than 100 countries, the right to a healthy environment enjoys constitutional status and at least 130 States have ratified regional human rights treaties that explicitly include the right to a healthy environment in Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, the Middle East, parts of Asia and Europe.66 The Regional Agreement on Access to Information, Public Participation and Justice in Environmental Matters in Latin America and the Caribbean aims to contribute to the protection of the right of every person of present and future generations to live in a healthy environment and to sustainable development and requires each party to the Agreement to guarantee the right of every person to live in a healthy environment (arts. 1 and 4). The Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters protects the right of every person of present and future generations to live in an environment adequate to his or her health and wellbeing (art. 1). 47. A safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment is a fundamental prerequisite for the full enjoyment of all human rights, and the exercise of human rights is crucial for the protection of a healthy environment. The interdependence between human rights and the environment, and States’ obligations in this regard, are clearly established in international law and standards. The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Special Rapporteur on the issue of human rights obligations relating to the enjoyment of a safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment and the Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme have all called for global recognition of the human right to a healthy environment. States should cooperate for the protection and fulfilment of the human right to a healthy environment and to take the steps necessary to ensure its effective enjoyment by all persons, including children. 48. The right to a healthy environment underpins the rights of all children not only to survive but to thrive and live in dignity. All children should enjoy the rights to breathe clean air, to drink potable water, to inhabit a non-toxic environment and consume uncontaminated food, to live without fear of steadily rising tides and a climate crisis, to enjoy the certainty that the biodiversity of the natural world will remain for future generations and to safely participate in decision-making and access information and justice with respect to environmental matters. The quality of the environment is a fundamental determinant of children’s right to health, which depends upon a healthy and diverse 64 65 66 A/73/188, para. 23. A/HRC/35/13, para. 21; A/73/188; Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, general recommendation No. 37 (2018) on the gender-related dimensions of disaster risk reduction in the context of climate change. David R. Boyd, “Catalyst for change: evaluating forty years of experience in implementing the right to a healthy environment”, in The Human Right to a Healthy Environment, John H. Knox and Ramin Pejan, eds. (Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2018); David R. Boyd, The Environmental Rights Revolution: A Global Study of Constitutions, Human Rights, and the Environment (Vancouver, University of British Columbia Press, 2012); www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/Display News.aspx?NewsID=23782&LangID=E. 9