A court in Australia could be the latest to deliver a landmark climate victory with a judge set to rule Tuesday on whether the government needs to do more to protect the rights of Indigenous populations threatened by rising tides.
The Federal Court of Australia is expected to deliver its decision in Pabai Pabai v. Commonwealth of Australia, a 2021 lawsuit that seeks to compel the government to more rapidly slash greenhouse gas emissions.
It was modeled after the landmark Urgenda Foundation v. State of the Netherlands case in which the District Court of The Hague required the government to immediately take more effective action to address climate change.
The Australian case was filed in October 2021 by two Indigenous Torres Strait islanders — Pabai Pabai and Paul Kabai — who say the country’s reliance on fossil fuels is threatening their communities.
