Friday 17 February at 11:30 CET in Zoom.
Register here.
To fight global warming, climate emissions must go down while carbon removals go up.
And, importantly, governments must respect their own laws.
Join us to hear about Finland’s first climate lawsuit, and two other recent climate cases in Europe, all of which address inaction on carbon sinks.
Programme:
11:30 Opening remarks, by Kaisa Kosonen, Senior Policy Advisor, Greenpeace
11:35 Finland’s 1st climate court case, by Hanna Aho, Policy Officer, Finnish Association for Nature Conservation
11:50 Case Aurora – youth vs. Sweden, by Anna Rogalska Hedlund, attorney for Aurora.
12:00 Case Deutsche Umwelthilfe vs. Germany, by Dr. Caroline Douhaire, Associate, Geulen & Klinger
12:10 Discussion facilitated by Dr Kati Kulovesi, Professor of International Law and Director, CCEEL, UEF Law School
12:45 Closing
The webinar is organised by Greenpeace Nordic, Finnish association for Nature Conservation and the 2035 Legitimacy Project / Center for Climate Change, Energy and Environment Law CCEEL.
Background:
Finland has a target of becoming climate neutral by 2035. Now this target, which is enshrined in Finland’s Climate Act, is in danger. Representing a historical shift, Finland’s land-use sector has turned from a net sink into a net source of climate warming emissions. Frustrated by their government’s inaction, despite the obligations in national and EU law, Greenpeace and Finnish Association for Nature Conservation took the Finnish government to court, by filing an administrative complaint to Finland’s Supreme Administrative Court in November 2022. (For more info, see here.)
In Sweden, after two years of intense legal preparations, the youth organization Aurora submitted a litigation in November 2022 against the Swedish state for its insufficient climate policies – the very first of its kind in Sweden. According to the claim, the Swedish state must drastically reduce emissions and protect carbon-absorbing natural ecosystems in order to achieve its fair share of global mitigation efforts. For more info, see here.
Germany’s climate protection act stipulates achieving greenhouse gas neutrality by 2045 latest. Deutsche Umwelthilfe (DUH) (German Environmental Action), filed a suit in November 2022 against the German government, calling on it`s legal responsibility to present a climate protection program that formulates sufficient measures to achieve the LULUCF’s climate targets. For more info, see here.
