The 1992 Rio Declaration on Environment and Development provides 27 principles to guide future sustainable development. This book is the first commentary on the Declaration, investigating the origins, development, and impact of each of the 27 principles on the ways in which sustainable development has been encouraged through international law.

• 1: Jorge E. Viñuales: The Rio Declaration on Environment and Development: A Preliminary Study


• 2: Pierre-Marie Dupuy: The Philosophy of the Rio Declaration


• 3: Jacqueline Peel: Changing Conceptions of Environmental Risk


• 4: Francesco Francioni: The Preamble of the Rio Declaration


• 5: Francesco Francioni: Principle 1: Human Beings and the Environment


• 6: Leslie-Anne Duvic-Paoli and Jorge E. Viñuales: Principle 2: Prevention


• 7: Claire Molinari: Principle 3: From a Right to Development to Intergenenerational Equity


• 8: Virginie Barral and Pierre-Marie Dupuy: Principle 4: Sustainable Development through Integration


• 9: Takhmina Karimova and Christophe Golay: Principle 5: Poverty Eradication


• 10: Mamadou Hébié: Principle 6: Special Situation of Developing Countries


• 11: Philippe Cullet: Principle 7: Common but Differentiated Responsibilities


• 12: Christina Voigt: Principle 8: Sustainable Patterns of Production and Consumption and Demographic Policies


• 13: Sandrine Maljean-Dubois: Principle 9: Science and Technology


• 14: Jonas Ebbesson: Principle 10: Public Participation


• 15: Martina Kunz: Principle 11: Environmental Legislation


• 16: Margaret Young: Principle 12: The Environment and Trade


• 17: Malgosia Fitzmaurice: Principle 13: Liability and Compensation


• 18: Makane M. Mbengue: Principle 14: Dangerous Activities and Substances


• 19: Antônio Augusto Cançado Trindade: Principle 15: Precaution


• 20: Priscilla Schwartz: Principle 16: The Polluter-Pays Principle


• 21: Neil Craik: Principle 17: Environmental Impact Assessment


• 22: Phoebe Okowa: Principle 18: Notification and Assistance in Case of Emergency


• 23: Laurence Boisson de Chazournes and Komlan Sangbana: Principle 19: Notification and Consultation on Activities with Transboundary Impact


• 24: Claire Mahon: Principle 20: The Role of Women


• 25: Magnus Jesko Langer: Principle 21: The Role of the Youth


• 26: Dinah Shelton: Principle 22: Indigenous People and Sustainable Development


• 27: Mara Tignino: Principle 23: The Environment of Oppressed Peoples


• 28: Marie-Louise Tougas: Principle 24: The Environment in Armed Conflict


• 29: Annyssa Bellal and Gilles Giacca: Principle 25: Peace, Development and Environmental Protection


• 30: Timothy Stephens: Principle 26: International Environmental Dispute Settlement


• 31: Peter H. Sand: Principle 27: Cooperation in a Spirit of Global Partnership

Jorge E. Viñuales is Harold Samuel Professor of Law and Environmental Policy at the University of Cambridge.