A/HRC/52/53 concern. They highlighted that for climate action to be fully effective, it had to integrate the perspectives of people in vulnerable situations, including minorities. 59. In her report submitted to the General Assembly at its seventy-seventh session, the Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance explained why there could be no meaningful mitigation or resolution of the global ecological crisis without specific action to address systemic racism, in particular the racial legacies of colonialism and slavery. In the report she referred to “sacrifice zones”, regions rendered dangerous and even uninhabitable owing to environmental degradation. 65 She has also said that such regions are in effect “racial and ethnic sacrifice zones”, where inhabitants have been subjected “to the worst forms of historical and contemporary racial and ethnic subordination”. 66 She recommended institutionalizing meaningful participation of racially and ethnically marginalized persons in climate governance and prioritizing reparations for historical climate harms and for contemporary harms rooted in historic injustice.67 I. Empowerment and participation 60. Article 2 of the Declaration provides that persons belonging to minorities have the right to participate effectively in cultural, religious, social, economic and public life. The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination has recommended action to ensure the effective participation of minorities in decision-making68 and equitable representation, including through special measures, in the public sector,69 the police force and the judiciary.70 The Human Rights Committee has recommended that ethnic minorities be represented in national human rights institutions, 71 governmental bodies and public administration at all levels. 72 The Secretary-General has recalled that “societies that embrace diversity and inclusion are more vibrant”.73 61. In the third cycle of the redesigned Minorities Fellowship Programme, OHCHR recruited, in 2022, 11 former minority fellows as senior fellows. OHCHR posted almost all senior fellows in their home regions. Three were placed in OHCHR regional offices – one in the Pacific office, one in the Middle East and North Africa office, and one in the Central Africa office. Four were assigned to United Nations country teams: in Argentina, in Montenegro, in Nepal and in Nigeria. Two were placed in OHCHR country offices (Ukraine and Yemen). One was placed in the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq. One senior fellow is based in Geneva to provide support for the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on minority issues. 62. OHCHR launched a new intersectionality component of the senior fellowship programme. Former minority fellows who also self-identify as persons belonging to the LGBTIQ+ community and/or persons with disabilities were recruited under this component. The intersectionality focus has been extended to former OHCHR fellows of African descent to promote inclusion and diversity while also addressing persistent and multiple forms of discrimination. In 2022, five new senior fellows were recruited under this component. 63. The senior fellowship programme has become an OHCHR flagship participation, training and capacity-building initiative. The programme offers senior fellows the opportunity to strengthen their skills and advance their knowledge of human rights, especially 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 GE.22-29200 A/77/549, p. 1 and para. 1. See https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2022/11/global-climate-crisis-racial-justice-crisis-unexpert. A/77/549, paras. 78 and 82. CERD/C/SVK/CO/11-12, para. 20. CERD/C/AZE/CO/10-12, para. 25; and CERD/C/KAZ/CO/8-10, para. 30. CERD/C/ZWE/CO/5-11, para. 44 (c). CCPR/C/IRQ/CO/6, paras. 6–7. CCPR/C/GEO/CO/5, para. 52 (a). See https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/sg/statement/2022-09-21/secretary-generals-remarks-the-highlevel-meeting-the-30th-anniversary-of-the-adoption-of-the-declaration-rights-of-persons-belongingnational-or-ethnic-religious-and. 13