Toxic Beauty: Confronting the Global Crisis of Skin Bleaching at UNEA-7
At the Seventh Session of the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA-7), a dedicated side event titled “Toxic Skin Bleaching: A Growing Global Health Threat” took place on 10 December 2025, bringing critical attention to the health, environmental and human rights impacts of toxic skin-lightening practices. Held in the Green Room (Conference Room 14), the event gathered 50–70 participants, including UNEA delegates, civil society organisations, researchers and government representatives.
Skin bleaching as a gender and justice issue
The event firmly framed skin bleaching as more than a public health concern. It was presented as a matter of environmental justice, racial equity and gender equality. References were made to the UN report “Gender and Toxics”, presented to the UN General Assembly in October 2024 by Marcos Orellana, UN Special Rapporteur on toxics and human rights, which documented how toxic exposures are shaped by gendered and structural inequalities.
Moderated by Tess Gitau and Dalia Márquez, Co-Chairs of the Women’s Major Group at UNEP, the session combined scientific evidence, policy perspectives and lived experiences in an interactive and inclusive format.
Key contributions included the Minamata Convention Secretariat, Patrizia Heidegger, Deputy Secretary General of the European Environmental Bureau (EEB) and the Zero Mercury Working Group, who addressed the global mercury crisis linked to skin-lightening products sold online and called for stronger enforcement and international cooperation. Representatives from ESDO Bangladesh and the Government of Bangladesh shared progress made in phasing out toxic skin bleaching products at national level, while John Baaki of the Women Environmental Programme Nigeria premiered the documentary “Fairness at a Cost”, illustrating the human cost of toxic beauty practices. Additional presentations came rom EcoWaste Coalition and IPEN showcasing the problem of skin lighting creams in the Philippines.
