Promoting Access to Information, Public Participation and Justice on Climate Change

Climate change is currently the cornerstone of environmental challenges. This work aims to clarify the checks and balances between governments and the public through the lens of green access rights enshrined in different legal bodies, as the Paris Agreement, the Aarhus Convention and the Escazu Agreement. Access to information, public participation in decision-making and access to justice in environmental matters are justified as a need within any democratic society, depicted in several national laws seeking to hold public authorities accountable when breaching their policies.

As the repercussions of climate change have a diverse impact, these rights are conceived to be human rights since they provide for the insurance of living in a healthy environment, also regarded as green access rights. Therefore, this chapter seeks to clarify how crucial it is for people to be engaged in climate change policymaking, decision-making and law-framing. Participation means diversity, and diversity means more possibilities of finding solutions while also enduring democracy and safeguarding the planet for future generations.