Vancouver is among the British Columbia communities exploring climate liability options. Photo credit: George Rose/Getty Images By Dana Drugmand As Canadian communities continue to lay the groundwork for liability cases against fossil fuel companies, one of the country’s leading constitutional and…
Poland's Belchatow coal plant is the single largest emitter of carbon pollution in Europe. Photo credit: Sean Gallup/Getty Images By Dana Drugmand A groundbreaking new lawsuit challenging a Polish coal plant—the largest single emitter of carbon dioxide in Europe—was launched Thursday by the environmental…
The UN expert on human rights says Norway can't reconcile its fight against climate change with its heavy economic reliance on oil drilling and exportation. Photo credit: Pierre-Henry Deshayes/AFP/Getty Images By Dana Drugmand Ahead of a November court hearing in a lawsuit challenging the Norwegian government’s approval of offshore oil drilling, a UN human rights…
Greta Thunberg, the Swedish teen who inspired worldwide climate strikes, is leading a plea to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child to accelerate action on climate change. Photo credit: Johannes Eisele/AFP/Getty Images By Karen Savage Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg and 15 other young people from around the world have filed a human rights complaint against five…
A judge has rejected claims from an environmental organization that the Irish government must take more aggressive action on climate change. Photo credit: Climate Case Ireland By Isabella Kaminski Ireland’s High Court ruled on Thursday that the country’s current National Mitigation Plan is consistent with both Irish and European law, rejecting…
Litigation is one tool leaders at the People’s Summit said they plan to leverage to hold governments and corporations accountable for climate change. Photo credit: United Nations By Dana Drugmand International human rights leaders will deliver a new declaration on climate, rights and human survival to world leaders when they assemble this…
Marjan Minnesma, director of the Urgenda Foundation, awaits the Dutch government's final appeal in the historic verdict ordering the country to reduce emissions as promised. Photo credit: Jerry Lampen/AFP/Getty Images By Dana Drugmand Two independent judicial officials in the Netherlands have advised the Dutch Supreme Court to uphold a groundbreaking ruling in the case Urgenda…
Citizens in Pakistan have successfully challenged the government's role in allowing deforestation, which worsens air pollution and climate change. Photo credit: Arif Ali/AFP/Getty Images By Karen Savage A judge in Pakistan has ordered that country’s government to uphold its laws and policies regarding climate change and the environment, ruling…
Activists are demanding UK governments live up to their responsibility to cut emissions under the country's Climate Change Act. Photo credit: John Keeble/Getty Images By Karen Savage An environmental law organization has told dozens of municipalities in England that it will take legal action against them if they do…
Australia's Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack, left, along with Prime Minister Scott Morrison, center, have steadfastly backed their country's use of coal amid pleas from the Pacific Islands to combat climate change. Photo credit: Tracey Nearmy/Getty Images By Dana Drugmand As a tense meeting of countries in the Pacific region concluded last week with Australia forcing a watered-down statement climate change, Australia’s…