5.3: Environmental rights as human rights
Does the bank’s policy commitments recognise environmental rights as human rights, and does its due diligence process identify, prevent, and mitigate risks of environmental impacts on human rights?
About the data
The BankTrack Global Human Rights Benchmark is an independent assessment of the world’s largest commercial banks, measuring how they respect human rights in their policies, practices, and business relationships. Built on the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, the benchmark evaluates banks across key themes, including policy commitments, due diligence, remedy, and specific issues such as the protection of human rights defenders, free, prior, and informed consent, and environmental rights.
Why this metric is important: In 2022, the UN General Assembly adopted a landmark resolution recognising the human right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment. Environmental degradation – such as deforestation, pollution, and climate change – can have severe and direct impacts on the enjoyment of basic human rights, including the rights to life, health, and food. The UN resolution calls on business enterprises, among other stakeholders, to adopt policies and scale up efforts to ensure environmental rights are enjoyed by all. Therefore, businesses, including banks, must acknowledge and respect environmental rights as human rights, and seek to identify, prevent and mitigate risks of environmental impacts on people.
Why this metric is important: In 2022, the UN General Assembly adopted a landmark resolution recognising the human right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment. Environmental degradation – such as deforestation, pollution, and climate change – can have severe and direct impacts on the enjoyment of basic human rights, including the rights to life, health, and food. The UN resolution calls on business enterprises, among other stakeholders, to adopt policies and scale up efforts to ensure environmental rights are enjoyed by all. Therefore, businesses, including banks, must acknowledge and respect environmental rights as human rights, and seek to identify, prevent and mitigate risks of environmental impacts on people.
Methodology
Requirements for full and half score:
Full score: The bankʼs policy commitment includes a recognition of environmental rights as human rights; for example, with reference to the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment (as recognised in 2022 by the UN General Assembly) AND its due diligence process identifies, prevents and mitigates risks of environmental impacts on human rights.
Half score: The bankʼs policy commitment includes a recognition of environmental rights as human rights; for example, with reference to the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment (as recognised in 2022 by the UN General Assembly).
Full methodology can be found in the report.
Full score: The bankʼs policy commitment includes a recognition of environmental rights as human rights; for example, with reference to the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment (as recognised in 2022 by the UN General Assembly) AND its due diligence process identifies, prevents and mitigates risks of environmental impacts on human rights.
Half score: The bankʼs policy commitment includes a recognition of environmental rights as human rights; for example, with reference to the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment (as recognised in 2022 by the UN General Assembly).
Full methodology can be found in the report.
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Yes
Partially
No
Assessment
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