Lucy Maxwell is co-director at the Climate Litigation Network, a program of the Urgenda Foundation. She says courts can play a key role in ensuring that promises are kept. The longer states delay deep emissions reductions they're relying on long term large scale carbon dioxide removal which we know is not feasible and has significant human rights implications.
The last several years have seen a big increase in the number of lawsuits focused on the climate crisis. Some lawsuits challenge governments for their support for fossil fuels and for their failure to take climate action, while other cases target the fossil fuel companies themselves for knowingly misleading the world about the climate disrupting impacts of burning their products. Some of these cases seek monetary damages, others seek to hold governments accountable to their emissions reduction pledges. As more of these cases get their time in court, how powerful can litigation be in forcing action around the climate emergency?
Guests:
Delta Merner, Lead Scientist, Science Hub for Climate Litigation, Union of Concerned Scientists
Korey Silverman-Roati, Senior Fellow, Sabin Center for Climate Change Law, Columbia Law School
Lucy Maxwell, Co-Director, Climate Litigation Network, Urgenda Foundation
For show notes and related links, visit https://www.climateone.org/watch-and-listen/podcasts
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