The United Nations – the intergovernmental body responsible for international cooperation and order – is set to move in the direction of formally recognising the right to a healthy environment as a human right. The development comes at a time following an emerging awareness of the number of murders, violence and intimidation of activists trying to protect their local environments from activities such as pollution, deforestation and poaching. A pact in alignment with this framework has already been signed by 24 Latin American and Caribbean countries, which legally binds them to investigate and punish those involved in killing individuals whilst protecting the environment.
