On 4 March 2018, the Latin American and Caribbean region made history when it adopted the Regional Agreement on Access to Information, Public Participation and Justice in Environmental Matters in Latin America and the Caribbean, at Escazú, Costa Rica. The Regional Agreement is a ground-breaking legal instrument for environmental protection, but it is also a human rights treaty. Its main beneficiaries are the people of the Latin American and Caribbean region, particularly the most vulnerable groups and communities. It aims to ensure the right of all persons to have access to information in a timely and appropriate manner, to participate significantly in making the decisions that affect their lives and their environment, and to access justice when those rights have been infringed. The treaty recognizes the rights of all individuals, provides measures to facilitate their exercise and, most importantly, establishes mechanisms to render them effective.
