International Day for Universal Access to Information

Environmental information systems must be transparent, well-organised, and easily accessible, including for people with disabilities

Following is the statement endorsed by the participants at the International Day for Universal Access to Information held in Manila, Republic of the Philippines on 29-30 September 2025.  

In accordance with the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights,

Recalling key international instruments, including the 1992 Rio Declaration, especially Principle 10, and the 2015 Paris Agreement, in particular its Preamble, which affirms the integration of human rights in climate action, and its Article 12, which promotes cooperation to enhance climate change education, training, public awareness, public participation and public access to information.

Underlining the importance of national and local implementation of the Rio Declaration (1992), we note the beneficial impact of its application in countries that are parties to the Aarhus Convention (1998) and the Escazú (2018) Agreement.

Further recalling the 1993 Vienna Declaration’s affirmation of the universality and interdependence of human rights, and its recognition that environmental harm disproportionately affects vulnerable populations.

Highlighting the Windhoek+30 Declaration, reaffirming information as a public good and underlining that its principles were endorsed by UNESCO’s 2021 General Conference.

Welcoming UN Human Rights Council Resolution 48/13 (2021) and UN General Assembly Resolution 76/300 (2022), recognising the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment.

Acknowledging the Global Digital Compact (2024) as a forward-looking global framework that recognises the importance of responsible data governance in the context of environmental sustainability.

Noting the critical link between environmental rights and sustainable development, particularly in advancing SDG target 16.10, which calls for the adoption of statutory guarantees for public access to information.

Recalling the specific recommendations on adopting or strengthening access to information legislation made during the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) processes of the UN Human Rights Council.

Convinced that strengthening access to environmental information will reinforce human rights protections and advance sustainable development globally, including in Southeast Asia.

The participants of the Global Conference IDUAI 2025 hereby reiterate:

1. Access to environmental information is a cornerstone of environmental protection and sustainable development, including in Southeast Asia. In all regions facing accelerating environmental degradation, climate risks, and biodiversity loss, empowering people with timely, reliable, and accessible environmental information is essential to ensure informed decision-making, community resilience, and accountability.

2. Every person has the right to seek, receive, and use environmental information held by public authorities and, where relevant, private entities. This includes data on environmental quality, emissions, ecosystem status, and the potential risks posed by industrial and extractive activities, both on land and in the marine environment. Governments must proactively collect, publish, and disseminate such information through electronic and other accessible means, using culturally appropriate formats and languages, especially for vulnerable and marginalised groups.

3. Environmental information systems must be transparent, well-organised, and easily accessible, including for people with disabilities. Information should be released proactively or made available promptly upon request, with no undue restrictions on reproduction or use. Legal and administrative measures should also be introduced to enable public access to environmental information held by private sector entities, including through requirements for sustainability reporting, due diligence disclosures, and environmental impact assessments. We urge governments to ensure the independence of the oversight mechanisms and remedies to address denial of access, delays, or failures to release information.

We, hereby:

A) Welcome the proactive actions of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) and ASEAN Member States towards the development of an ASEAN Declaration on the right to a safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment, and welcome its upcoming consideration for adoption.

B) Encourage Member States to strengthen access to information, to define environmental information broadly, to establish public environmental information clearinghouses to serve as centralised, publicly accessible data repositories, and to develop clear dissemination frameworks with legally defined timelines and procedures.

C) Urge Governments to enact legislation requiring proactive publication of environmental threats and ensure that the grounds for denying access to environmental information are strictly limited to reasons permitted under international human rights law and subject to proportionality and necessity.

D) Promote access to environmental information for communities potentially affected by transboundary or high-risk activities, in accordance with international principles, including Principle 19 of the Rio Declaration, and in line with the right to free, prior and informed consent of Indigenous Peoples, as recognised in the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. This includes advance notice, full disclosure of risks and mandatory public participation of potentially impacted communities in environmental and social impact assessments for major projects, including cross-border consultations.

E) Recommend accelerating efforts to assist Small Island Developing States (SIDS) that do not have ATI legislation in adopting such legislation and developing implementation mechanisms that consider the recommendations provided by the Access to Information Model Law for SIDS.

F) Request to expedite the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 16.10, ensuring public access to information and the protection of fundamental freedoms, given the urgent need to accelerate the adoption of access to information legislation in the more than 50 countries that still lack such laws. Member States must lead this global effort, ensuring that all people can meaningfully engage in protecting their environment and future. We further call for regular global monitoring of progress, with the UN system reporting annually on advances and gaps in access to environmental information worldwide.

G) Encourage all relevant stakeholders to join the Global Initiative for Information Integrity on Climate Change, co-chaired by the Government of Brazil, UNESCO and the United Nations, underlining the central connection between access to information and information integrity.