International NGOs and the (Non) Mobilization of Human Rights in the Context of Climate Change

Abstract

There is growing recognition that climate change constitutes an unprecedented threat to human rights. Why then do some international NGOs mobilize human rights in the context of climate change whereas others do not? This chapter explores the mobilization of a human rights framing of climate change by five key INGOs. The chapter draws on sociological institutionalist approaches to identify the factors that matter in accounting for variation in the turn to a human rights framing of climate change. We find that while some features of organizational identity—sector, type, mandate, and brand—are often evoked as reasons for the non-engagement with a human rights framing of climate change, none of these factors account for the variation in public-facing engagement that we document. Instead, we find that the way staff perceive an organization’s identity and its fit with the human rights and climate change frame is influential in shaping whether an organization mobilizes on the issue.