Autumn 2026 Convening
Strasbourg, France | 11−12 October 2026
The Campaign to advance the legal protection of the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment in Europe is organizing a 2−day in-person convening in Strasbourg in the fall of 2026. As discussions within the Council of Europe on protecting this right accelerate over the coming months, we will continue to work to strengthen our Europe-wide efforts towards coordinated advocacy, common messaging, rapid collective responses, and strategic engagement with decision-makers at all relevant levels.
This convening represents a critical opportunity to build the trust, relationships, and shared strategy required for the next phase of the Campaign. It also seeks to develop a strong civil society coalition to advance rights-based environmental action at all levels across European countries through complementary legal, policy, advocacy, and movement-building strategies.
Background
Across Europe, wildfires are spreading. From France and Scotland to Spain, Europe is facing the devastating impacts of the triple planetary crisis – from water scarcity to record-breaking heat. These interconnected crises threaten all forms of life on Earth, undermine the enjoyment of fundamental human rights, exacerbate existing inequalities, and disproportionately affect children, youth, older persons, persons with disabilities, women, Indigenous Peoples, marginalized communities, and those already in vulnerable situations.
The right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment is an essential prerequisite for all human rights. As recalled by the International Court of Justice Advisory Opinion last year, “a clean, healthy and sustainable environment is a precondition for the enjoyment of many human rights, such as the right to life, the right to health and the right to an adequate standard of living, including access to water, food, and housing”.
The Council of Europe has a unique role in safeguarding human rights, democracy, and the rule of law across Europe. While the European Court of Human Rights has progressively interpreted the European Convention on Human Rights to protect individuals from environmental harm, it remains the only regional human rights system that has not yet explicitly legally protected the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment. This is despite the fact that the majority of Council of Europe member states already recognize the right in their constitutions or domestic legislation.
Political momentum within the Council of Europe has continued to grow. The Parliamentary Assembly has for decades repeatedly called for stronger legal protection of the right.
Heads of State of the Council of Europe’s Member States committed in the 2023 Reykjavik Declaration to strengthen the Council of Europe’s work on the human rights aspects of the environment, based on a political recognition of the right to a healthy environment. In May 2025, the Committee of Ministers instructed its Deputies to “move forward as quickly as possible in their consideration of a possible binding or non-binding instrument in this field”.
The Campaign for the Right to a Healthy Environment in Europe brings together civil society organizations, children’s and youth organizations, academics, and allies in intergovernmental organizations – among others – working collectively to strengthen the protection of the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment in Europe. Through coordinated advocacy, strategic collaboration, and mutual learning, the Campaign seeks to advance the adoption of a strong regional legal treaty capable of strengthening environmental protection, enhancing environmental justice, and defending people's rights across Europe. We also work together to promote rights-based action on the environment across the continent and to advance the protection of those crucial voices standing up for these rights, whether at the national or regional level.
As discussions within the Council of Europe enter a critical phase, the Campaign’s in-person meeting offers an important opportunity to consolidate joint efforts for the protection of rights and the environment, strengthen collective capacity, and agree on a shared strategy for the next phase of advocacy around the binding instrument that will require substantive collective engagement over the long term.
Objectives
The in-person meeting aims to:
Participants
The meeting is expected to bring together approximately 50 participants. Participants are expected to represent a broad range of constituencies and expertise, including:
The Campaign will seek to ensure geographical, gender, and constituency representation.
Location & dates
The meeting will take place in Strasbourg to enable strategic engagement with Council of Europe institutions and policymakers at a key moment in the ongoing process. The convening will take place on Sunday 11 and Monday 12 October 2026. Participants will be invited to arrive on 10 October to enable participation in the full event.
Registration
To apply to join the Convening, please fill this expressionofinterestform. You will hear from us very soon after.