Overview of environmental governance
1. Do you have any general comments on the scope of the review and the Scottish Government approach?
Please give us your views
Paths for All welcomes the opportunity to respond to this consultation. Our comments are limited to areas that we feel are directly relevant to our work.
Our vision is for Scotland to be a walking nation where everyone has the opportunity to be active every day, creating a happier, healthier and greener Scotland.
Our places and spaces should be safe and attractive for everyone to walk in.
We work in collaboration with local authorities and communities to develop inclusive environments for everyone to be active. When our towns, cities and rural areas are designed and managed for walking, we can reduce car use, improve connectedness, and allow everyone to benefit from accessing natural environments.
Human Right to a Healthy Environment
We support the proposed recognition and inclusion of the human right to a healthy environment in the Human Rights Bill.
We agree that a right to a healthy environment will help to raise awareness of the interconnected and mutually reinforcing nature of realising people's human rights and ensuring a healthy environment in which to live, work and play.
We agree that this will help to build on existing goals in Scotland to promote a healthy and sustainable environment for everyone. This will underpin policies such as 20 Minute Neighbourhoods within NPF4, reducing car Km, and low emission zones. It will support efforts to address inequalities – whereby not everyone has access to the same equality of environment.
The right to a healthy environment has six features which need protection: clean air, safe climate, access to safe water and adequate sanitation, healthy and sustainably produced food, non-toxic environments, and healthy biodiversity and ecosystems. We consider that the ability of people to access and enjoy their environment goes hand in hand with this.
The United Nations recognises that all people have the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment. As human rights and the environment are interdependent, a clean, healthy and sustainable environment is necessary for the full enjoyment of a wide range of human rights, such as the rights to life, health, food, water and sanitation and development, among others.
https://www.undp.org/sites/g/files/zskgke326/files/2023-01/UNDP-UNEP-UNHCHR-What-is-the-Right-to-a-Healthy-Environment.pdf
UNICEF recognises that the right to a healthy environment is a powerful tool to protect children from the impact of environmental degradation and climate change.
Among the actions they recommend is: Create sustainable and child-friendly urban spaces by increasing and improving public transport, green spaces and safe walking and cycling paths.
https://www.unicef.org/media/124656/file/Childhood_Right_To_Healthy_Environments_Key_Messages_2022.pdf
Our vision is for Scotland to be a walking nation where everyone has the opportunity to be active every day, creating a happier, healthier and greener Scotland.
Our places and spaces should be safe and attractive for everyone to walk in.
We work in collaboration with local authorities and communities to develop inclusive environments for everyone to be active. When our towns, cities and rural areas are designed and managed for walking, we can reduce car use, improve connectedness, and allow everyone to benefit from accessing natural environments.
Human Right to a Healthy Environment
We support the proposed recognition and inclusion of the human right to a healthy environment in the Human Rights Bill.
We agree that a right to a healthy environment will help to raise awareness of the interconnected and mutually reinforcing nature of realising people's human rights and ensuring a healthy environment in which to live, work and play.
We agree that this will help to build on existing goals in Scotland to promote a healthy and sustainable environment for everyone. This will underpin policies such as 20 Minute Neighbourhoods within NPF4, reducing car Km, and low emission zones. It will support efforts to address inequalities – whereby not everyone has access to the same equality of environment.
The right to a healthy environment has six features which need protection: clean air, safe climate, access to safe water and adequate sanitation, healthy and sustainably produced food, non-toxic environments, and healthy biodiversity and ecosystems. We consider that the ability of people to access and enjoy their environment goes hand in hand with this.
The United Nations recognises that all people have the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment. As human rights and the environment are interdependent, a clean, healthy and sustainable environment is necessary for the full enjoyment of a wide range of human rights, such as the rights to life, health, food, water and sanitation and development, among others.
https://www.undp.org/sites/g/files/zskgke326/files/2023-01/UNDP-UNEP-UNHCHR-What-is-the-Right-to-a-Healthy-Environment.pdf
UNICEF recognises that the right to a healthy environment is a powerful tool to protect children from the impact of environmental degradation and climate change.
Among the actions they recommend is: Create sustainable and child-friendly urban spaces by increasing and improving public transport, green spaces and safe walking and cycling paths.
https://www.unicef.org/media/124656/file/Childhood_Right_To_Healthy_Environments_Key_Messages_2022.pdf
About you
What is your organisation?
Organisation
Paths for All