QUNO attended the 19th Conference of the Parties (COP) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the 9th Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (CMP), held from 11 – 22 November in Warsaw, Poland. QUNO’s support of the UNFCCC multilateral process includes offering off-the-record spaces for delegates to meet, exchange ideas, and build bridges and trust. To find out more about the conference and the UNFCCC, visit http://unfccc.int/meetings/warsaw_nov_2013/meeting/7649.php.
														A Call for Climate Action: Protect Human Rights and Decrease Military Expending
HICC at the Human Rights Council QUNO participated in the climate and environmental discussions held in the 60th session Human Rights Council in Geneva. Through its Human Impacts of Climate Change (HICC) programme, QUNO delivered an oral statement on the critical role of human rights in climate action. Additionally, HICC contributed to a discussion on how military activities undermine the right to a healthy environment through their toxic and hazardous impacts. Lindsey Fielder Cook, HICC’s Representative, served as a panelist in the side event The Toxic Impact of Military Activities alongside the UN Special Rapporteur on Toxics and Human Rights, and representatives from Earthjustice, the Center for Global Nonkilling, and Dejusticia. The event discussed the findings and implications of the Special Rapporteur’s recent report on the human rights impacts of hazardous substances and waste resulting from military operations. Building on the Quakers Peace Testimony, QUNO emphasized that war is an abomination of human rights and highlighted how this report proves that military activities harm human beings and earth far beyond wartimes. Lindsey also underscored that military activities are responsible for nearly 5.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions. However, countries are not required to report these emissions into their National Determined […]






