An influential human rights court is set to rule on three cases Tuesday that could force European governments to more aggressively tackle climate change.
The biggest and most watched case in front of the European Court of Human Rights involves six youth plaintiffs from Portugal. They allege that Portugal’s government — and those of 31 other countries — have failed to do enough to protect them from the impacts of climate-fueled heat waves, storms and droughts.
A ruling in favor of the plaintiffs in any of the cases could have wide-ranging implications for climate policy throughout Europe. The court, based in Strasbourg, France, only hears a very select number of cases, and its findings cannot be appealed, giving them added heft.
And while Tuesday’s decisions will only apply to the countries named in the lawsuits, they could pave the way for similar cases to be taken up in other countries.
