THE RIO DECLARATION ON
ENVIRONMENT AND DEVELOPMENT
(1992)
Preamble
The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development,
Having met at Rio de Janeiro from 3 to 14 June 1992,
Reaffirming the Declaration of the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment, adopted at Stockholm on 16 June 1972, and seeking to build upon it,
With the goal of establishing a new and equitable global partnership
through the creation of new levels of cooperation among States, key sectors of societies and people,
Working towards international agreements which respect the interests of all and protect the integrity of the global environmental and developmental system,
Recognizing the integral and interdependent nature of the Earth, our home,
Proclaims that:
Principle 1
Human beings are at the centre of concerns for sustainable development. They are entitled to a healthy and
productive life in harmony with nature.
Principle 2
States have, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and the principles of international law, the
sovereign right to exploit their own resources pursuant to their own environmental and developmental policies, and
the responsibility to ensure that activities within their jurisdiction or control do not cause damage to the environment
of other States or of areas beyond the limits of national jurisdiction.
Principle 3
The right to development must be fulfilled so as to equitably meet developmental and environmental needs of present
and future generations.
Principle 4
In order to achieve sustainable development, environmental protection shall constitute an integral part of the
development process and cannot be considered in isolation from it.
Principle 5
All States and all people shall cooperate in the essential task of eradicating poverty as an indispensable requirement
for sustainable development, in order to decrease the disparities in standards of living and better meet the needs of the
majority of the people of the world.
Principle 6
The special situation and needs of developing countries, particularly the least developed and those most
environmentally vulnerable, shall be given special priority. International actions in the field of environment and
development should also address the interests and needs of all countries.
Principle 7
States shall cooperate in a spirit of global partnership to conserve, protect and restore the health and integrity of the
Earth's ecosystem. In view of the different contributions to global environmental degradation, States have common
but differentiated responsibilities. The developed countries acknowledge the responsibility that they bear in the
international pursuit of sustainable development in view of the pressures their societies place on the global
environment and of the technologies and financial resources they command.
Principle 8
To achieve sustainable development and a higher quality of life for all people, States should reduce and eliminate
unsustainable patterns of production and consumption and promote appropriate demographic policies.
Principle 9
States should cooperate to strengthen endogenous capacity-building for sustainable development by improving
scientific understanding through exchanges of scientific and technological knowledge, and by enhancing the
development, adaptation, diffusion and transfer of technologies, including new and innovative technologies.
Principle 10
Environmental issues are best handled with the participation of all concerned citizens, at the relevant level. At the
national level, each individual shall have appropriate access to information concerning the environment that is held
by public authorities, including information on hazardous materials and activities in their communities, and the
opportunity to participate in decision-making processes. States shall facilitate and encourage public awareness and
participation by making information widely available. Effective access to judicial and administrative proceedings,
including redress and remedy, shall be provided.
Principle 11
States shall enact effective environmental legislation. Environmental standards, management objectives and
priorities should reflect the environmental and developmental context to which they apply. Standards applied by
some countries may be inappropriate and of unwarranted economic and social cost to other countries, in particular
developing countries.
Principle 12
States should cooperate to promote a supportive and open international economic system that would lead to economic
growth and sustainable development in all countries, to better address the problems of environmental degradation.
Trade policy measures for environmental purposes should not constitute a means of arbitrary or unjustifiable
discrimination or a disguised restriction on international trade. Unilateral actions to deal with environmental
challenges outside the jurisdiction of the importing country should be avoided. Environmental measures addressing
transboundary or global environmental problems should, as far as possible, be based on an international
consensus.
Principle 13
States shall develop national law regarding liability and compensation for the victims of pollution and other
environmental damage. States shall also cooperate in an expeditious and more determined manner to develop further
international law regarding liability and compensation for adverse effects of environmental damage caused by
activities within their jurisdiction or control to areas beyond their jurisdiction.
Principle 14
States should effectively cooperate to discourage or prevent the relocation and transfer to other States of any
activities and substances that cause severe environmental degradation or are found to be harmful to human
health.
Principle 15
In order to protect the environment, the precautionary approach shall be widely applied by States according to their
capabilities. Where there are threats of serious or irreversible damage, lack of full scientific certainty shall not be
used as a reason for postponing cost-effective measures to prevent environmental degradation.
Principle 16
National authorities should endeavour to promote the internalization of environmental costs and the use of economic
instruments, taking into account the approach that the polluter should, in principle, bear the cost of pollution, with
due regard to the public interest and without distorting international trade and investment.
Principle 17
Environmental impact assessment, as a national instrument, shall be undertaken for proposed activities that are likely
to have a significant adverse impact on the environment and are subject to a decision of a competent national
authority.
Principle 18
States shall immediately notify other States of any natural disasters or other emergencies that are likely to produce
sudden harmful effects on the environment of those States. Every effort shall be made by the international
community to help States so afflicted.
Principle 19
States shall provide prior and timely notification and relevant information to potentially affected States on activities
that may have a significant adverse transboundary environmental effect and shall consult with those States at an early
stage and in good faith.
Principle 20
Women have a vital role in environmental management and development. Their full participation is therefore
essential to achieve sustainable development.
Principle 21
The creativity, ideals and courage of the youth of the world should be mobilized to forge a global partnership in order
to achieve sustainable development and ensure a better future for all.
Principle 22
Indigenous people and their communities, and other local communities, have a vital role in environmental
management and development because of their knowledge and traditional practices. States should recognize and
duly support their identity, culture and interests and enable their effective participation in the achievement of
sustainable development.
Principle 23
The environment and natural resources of people under oppression, domination and occupation shall be
protected.
Principle 24
Warfare is inherently destructive of sustainable development. States shall therefore respect international law
providing protection for the environment in times of armed conflict and cooperate in its further development, as
necessary.
Principle 25
Peace, development and environmental protection are interdependent and indivisible.
Principle 26
States shall resolve all their environmental disputes peacefully and by appropriate means in accordance with the
Charter of the United Nations.
Principle 27
States and people shall cooperate in good faith and in a spirit of partnership in the fulfilment of the principles
embodied in this Declaration and in the further development of international law in the field of sustainable
development.
* * * *
Page editor is:
Duncan Currie
Greenpeace International Legal Department
duncanc@xs4all.nl
You can mail him here.