ASSOCIATED PRESS • September 27, 2023
Six young adults and children argued that governments across Europe aren’t doing enough to protect people from climate change at the European Court of Human Rights on Wednesday in the latest and largest instance of activists taking governments to court to force climate action. Legal teams for the 32 nations – which includes the 27 EU member countries, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Norway, Russia, and Turkey – questioned the admissibility of the case as well as the claim that the plaintiffs are victims of climate change harm. “I am shocked by the countries’ attempt to ignore the evidence that we’ve put in front of them, and trivialize the current state we are facing,” said 15-year-old André Oliveira.