Disasters Discriminate, Indigenous Life and Health in the Climate Crisis : an intersectional analysis of the right to health and the right to life for Indigenous Peoples in the context of the climate crisis

Abstract

To say that Climate Change is a threat is an understatement. All life that exists is at risk due to its ever-worsening impacts. Environmental degradation as a result of climate change is one of the most serious and pervasive threats to both the natural and human world. All peoples, regardless of who they are or where they come from, are dependent on a healthy, functioning environment. Therefore, the realisation of the right to health and subsequently, the right to life is conditional upon the health of the environment and the threat of climate change. In the case of Indigenous Peoples, this threat has become an everyday reality. Already facing gross inequalities, Indigenous Peoples are intrinsically attached to their environment and therefore disproportionately affected by the impacts of climate change, particularly with regards to the right to health and the right to life. But how is this affecting their ability to achieve their inalienable right to health and the right to life?