2050Today Members
UN Human Rights – Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
Signatory institution of the 2050Today Charter
With every passing week, we witness the devastating impact of the triple planetary crisis of the climate emergency, biodiversity loss and pervasive pollution. My Office will continue to engage in global climate negotiations. We will advocate for higher ambition, including steeper downward emission reduction trajectories, stops to public fossil fuel subsidies and investments and call for an evidence-based Global Stocktake that can inform the concrete, realistic and human rights-based action we need.
Contribution to climate action
The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) is mandated by the UN General Assembly to promote and protect the enjoyment and full realization, by all people, of all human rights. The Charter of the United Nations, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and international human rights laws and treaties established those rights. As the leading UN entity charged with promoting and protecting human rights for all, United Nations Human Rights is working to advance the effective implementation of the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment, including in the context of sustainable environmental management.
Alignment with the strategy for sustainability management in the United Nations system, 2020-2030
An Organizational Effectiveness Action Plan for Sustainable Environmental Management was established for 2021-2023 and further extended to deepen sustainable environmental management in OHCHR from 2024-2027.
This plan includes a commitment to establish an Environmental Management System (EMS) by 2025 as outlined in the UN strategy and to ensure its implementation.
OHCHR established an internal Working Group on Sustainable Environmental Management (SEM Group) in July 2020. The SEM Group works to integrate sustainability efforts into the organization as a whole.
OHCHR also continues to collect data for the calculation of GHG emissions in accordance with Greening the Blue guidelines and reporting criteria and has already implemented a number of sustainable initiatives relating to travel, ICT, facilities and staff awareness. The office has also established a green fund for field initiatives, and a carbon levy on travel is intended to be implemented from 2024 to support the establishment of an EMS.
The office is also exploring issues related to integration of sustainability and rights in procurement and had been actively engaged in the development of Phase II of the UN Sustainability Strategy.
Emissions reduction
OHCHR is a member of the UN Environment Management Group (EMG) and the UN Working Group for Sustainable Environmental Management (previously the IMG). The office has participated in the Greening the Blue initiative since 2010, in line with the SG’s climate neutral strategy to report, reduce, and offset. To this end, the office created an Emission Reduction Plan (ERP) in 2011 signed off by the then High Commissioner and implemented a wide range of related sustainability action points from 2012-2019.
In response to the UN Climate Neutral initiative, OHCHR has reported its carbon footprint since 2010 (2009 data) in accordance with Greening the Blue standards. The footprint originally covered only operations at the headquarters in Geneva. Since 2018, the full organizational footprint has been reported, initially using proxies. From 2021, increased efforts were undertaken to engage country and regional offices in data collection for carbon footprint reporting. As a result, the number of locations providing data increased from 13 in 2021 to 37 in 2023.
Since 2020, OHCHR has also collected additional data for its carbon footprint for its headquarters in Geneva under the 2050Today reporting mechanism. As a signatory of the 2050Today Charter, OHCHR will participate in a number of collaborative efforts.
The OHCHR footprint varies year on year due to changes in reporting standards, mandates, office size and priorities. Nevertheless, as calculated per capita (t CO2e/staff), the United Nations Human Rights (OHCHR) footprint has been significantly reduced in recent years, and the 10% reduction target for 2020 (against the 2010 emission baseline) was met.
Environmental training for personnel
To enhance staff capacity and knowledge on sustainable environmental management and human rights, OHCHR developed and launched an internal online course on SEM and human rights. All staff are encouraged to undertake this training, and it is also included in the OHCHR Welcome Material for new staff.
The Greening the Blue tutorial has also been made available, and regular awareness initiatives, briefings and information material are disseminated to staff on a monthly basis. Staff are also engaged through the extended SEM Group and as sustainable focal points.
Staff awareness campaigns with regards to energy use, soft commuting, sustainable food consumption, waste management, and digital awareness are carried out on a regular basis. The SEM Group engages in staff broadcasts, coffee briefings, and targeted campaigns, and also organizes an annual Green Week for engaging staff.
Footprint and emissions by scope
2050Today’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions measurement methodology follows the GHG Protocol. The Protocol provides standards and guidance for organizations to measure and manage climate-warming emissions. It was created in 1998 through a partnership between the World Resources Institute (WRI) and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD).
According to the GHG Protocol, the distribution of emissions is done by scopes:
Scope 1 represents direct emissions linked to the consumption of fossil fuels.
Scope 2 represents indirect emissions from the generation of purchased electricity, steam, heating and cooling consumed by the reporting company.
Scope 3 includes all other indirect emissions that occur in a company’s value chain (i.e. purchased good or services, business travel, employee commuting).
The 2050Today carbon footprint takes into account the reported emissions generated by the activities of the institution over one year and is divided by categories:
Energy and water
It takes into account the amount of the consumed electricity produced and purchased by the institution. The energy consumed to heat and/or cool the institution’s building area and the consumed water are included as well.
Mobility
It takes into consideration business travels and commuting (on a survey basis).
Food
The CO2 impact of food includes the catering of the institution and individual consumption (on a survey basis) during working hours.
Purchased goods
The perimeter of purchased goods is set to a list of new office equipment, new mobility equipment (vehicles) and construction materials.
Waste
The perimeter of the waste inventory is set to waste production from facilities and internal operations of the institution
It has to be noted that the collected data of the 2050Today members resulting in each carbon footprint are not yet fully standardized and might not be entirely complete. Data collection is being progressively harmonized and improved. Therefore, direct comparisons between tCO2 / employee among institutions – be it in general or per sector – are not yet possible nor relevant.
To ensure the reliability, the accuracy and a recurrent updating of the carbon footprint assessment, 2050Today is advised by an international Carbon Footprint Scientific Committee.
OHCHR Specifics
Reported emissions in the Mobility category relate to official travel and do not include staff commuting. Travel reported here include all itineraries organized through OHCHR and originating in Geneva for all travel categories (Staff Members, Meeting Participants, Independent Experts, Consultants and other). CO2 emissions for flights are measured according to the Greening the Blue Methodology.
