Energy is central to both the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris
Agreement and a prerequisite to the realization of human rights for billions of people.
Yet the nexus between human rights, climate change and energy remains underdeveloped
in international law and practice. This article considers the potential and limitations
of a ‘human rights approach’ to energy to accelerate progress towards universal
access to modern energy services while addressing climate change and inequalities. It
considers three distinct elements of a human rights approach to energy: a discursive
element; a mainstreaming element; and a litigation element. In exploring the potential
contributions of each of these elements to a just energy transition, it demonstrates
how a human rights approach to energy can help to address some of the shortcomings
of the Sustainable Development Goals related to energy and climate.
