On climate, activism by young people has been a massively positive driving force
behind the steps that the world has so far taken to pull us back from total disaster.
I know that those measures are not yet sufficient. States and businesses around the world have not taken enough action to address climate change, to prevent pollution and to protect nature. The human rights impact is already massive. But there has been progress. And the United Nations is working to ensure that Governments now rapidly take much more decisive steps to ensure that environmental damage does not wipe out our human rights.
On the pandemic, your generation has been among the groups most profoundly affected by lockdowns. Such a large portion of your studies was affected when the COVID-19 virus brought our world to a halt. I am deeply grateful for the work of scientists whose vaccines brought us greater freedom. The pandemic may have brought you important insight into our common humanity, on this fragile planet that we all share. I think also that many of you may feel very deeply the scars of isolation and the limitations of online school; the pain of peering out at a scary world through the tiny rectangle of our screens.
Which brings me to our digital challenges. Artificial Intelligence, deep fakes, and bio-engineering are some of the areas where digital leaps forward are pushing Governments' regulatory capacity further, and faster, than it can go.
The implications for our human rights are enormous. When we cannot be sure what is true, none of us can feel secure. It seems likely that trust will be profoundly eroded - trust in our institutions, and trust in each other.
Artificial intelligence will have huge impact on education, communication, work, elections and far more. The wheel is spinning so fast now that we honestly have no idea what the full impact will be.
We need governments to come together with careful regulations that enable the benefits of digital technology, while placing guardrails on its potential harm to our human rights.
We need governments to come together to address climate change, biodiversity loss, pollution and the pillaging of our environment.
With the Russian invasion of Ukraine creating enormous suffering, and tugging the world back into hostile blocs, we need governments to come together to end conflicts.
We need to get the Sustainable Development Agenda back on track, so that the world can end hunger and extreme poverty.
We need, in other words, the convening power of the UN.
The UN system is not perfect, and it is not all-powerful. It is not a world government. It is grounded in the legitimacy of universality, in line with the UN Charter and international law. It brings a unique convening power to global crises, with the capacity to catalyse action by States, by business and by civil society. And it is infused by two important, and profoundly wise, documents: the UN Charter, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
The Charter tells us that the UN's purpose is to "save succeeding generations from the scourge of war"; "to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and
small" and "to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom", among other points.
And like the Charter, the Universal Declaration, whose 75th anniversary we mark this year, quite literally changed the world, powering colossal changes in people's lives and in government policies.
The right to live free from any form of discrimination, arbitrary detention and torture.
The rights to education and to adequate food, healthcare, clean water, sanitation, social protection, and housing.
Freedom of expression, opinion, and the right to privacy. Freedom of association and assembly, including the right to demonstrate peacefully.
The right to fair and just conditions of work.
To fair trial and to equal protection of the law.
To participate, freely and meaningfully, in public affairs.
75 years ago, States committed to upholding the innate equality of every human being on this planet, and to advancing the rights that we all share.
They did this, not out of idealism, but because they were shaken and depleted by two world wars, by horrific genocide, by the nuclear threat and by the greatest recession the world had ever experienced.
They knew that by building human rights, they would be able to slow and perhaps halt this spiralling destruction.
It's time to revive that spirit now.
The lessons of history remain true: without justice, there cannot be enduring peace. Without inclusion, there can be no sustainable development. Advancing human rights is the path to ensuring human well-being for generations to come. It is the way to combat despair.
Despair is often born out of the sense that your life and lives of people you care for count for nothing; that your voice, if you raise it, will be ignored or shut down.
The Universal Declaration has inspired decades of vibrant, creative, powerful activism and solidarity, empowering people to claim their rights and to engage actively in their communities and societies.
It was what inspired me to work on human rights and for a better world, in my formative years.
It brought me hope and the certitude that things could be different. It resonated in me as an articulation of the shared language of humanity - a unifying force for good. The Universal Declaration has guided me throughout my life.
So as I call on States this year to revive their commitment to the powerful words of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, I also ask that you stand up to demand freedom from fear, freedom from misery and deprivation, and justice - including climate justice - for everyone.
This cause is worth every effort.
Thank you
This speech was originally delivered in German
