Commentary: The Human Rights Implications of the Renewable Energy Transition
We have already started to experience the negative effects of climate change, which disproportionally affect vulnerable communities... From a human rights perspective, the renewable energy movement could not be more welcome–or more urgent... [However] dispossessions of indigenous peoples' lands remain a significant issue for renewable energy projects in territories with indigenous communities... [such as] if a wind farm were placed on indigenous lands without appropriate consent, it could harm livelihoods, including... by blocking access to food, if the land was previously used for local farming... At a macro level, energy policies need to be conceived in a way that trade-offs, co-benefits, and competing priorities are considered in the context of energy security, climate objectives, and the human rights of stakeholders, including local communities and workers... At a micro level, renewable energy projects need to be designed, financed, constructed, and integrated into energy systems with special consideration of human rights in fragile contexts where vulnerable communities are present...