21 November 2022
Die umweltrechtliche Verbandsklage lernt Auto fahren
Der Europäische Gerichtshof hat in der causa Klagebefugnis von Umweltverbänden (wieder einmal) gesprochen. Anerkannten Umweltverbänden darf es demnach nicht unmöglich gemacht werden, EG-Typgenehmigungen des Kraftfahrtbundesamtes gerichtlich überprüfen zu lassen. Das Urteil lehrte der umweltrechtlichen Verbandsklage nun das Autofahren, bereitet ihr aber gleichzeitig den weiteren Weg des Erwachsenwerdens. Denn im Besonderen hat der Gerichtshof über die Justiziabilität der Genehmigung von knapp fünf Millionen Fahrzeugen entschieden. Im Allgemeinen aber über die Justiziabilität sämtlicher staatlicher Entscheidungen, die möglicherweise gegen Umweltrecht verstoßen. Continue reading >>
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18 November 2022
The Reform That Isn’t
As states are set to vote on the reform of the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) at a Conference in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, on 22 November, concerns regarding the treaty's impact on states' climate policies remain significant. In our assessment, the proposed reform fails to provide the treaty’s contracting parties with the necessary regulatory freedom to implement their climate commitments. Scheduled for the week after COP27, the vote comes at a crucial time, as scientists agree that this is the decisive decade to limit global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. Meanwhile, several EU Member States, including Germany, France, Spain, Poland, the Netherlands, and Slovenia have announced unilateral withdrawals from the treaty, stating that the proposed reform fails to meet their expectations. Continue reading >>
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03 October 2022
Rising Before Sinking
On 22 September 2022, just one day before global climate protests took place in around 450 locations, the UN Human Rights Committee (Committee) has published its landmark decision in the case Daniel Billy et al. v. Australia. In casu, the Committee found that Australia failed to adequately protect members of an indigenous community present in four small, low-lying islands in the Torres Strait region from adverse impacts of climate change, which resulted in the violation of the complainants’ rights to enjoy their culture (Art. 27 ICPPR) and to be free from arbitrary interferences with their private life, family and home (Art. 17 ICCPR). The Committee thereby issued the first decision at the international level to tackle substantive human rights questions in the context of climate change that relate to the current situation of small islands and their indigenous inhabitants. Continue reading >>
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21 September 2022
Right-Wing Populists and the Global Climate Agenda
The rise of right-wing populist leaders, governments and political parties around the world has impacted environmental policy in general and the climate agenda particularly. In this brief commentary, we aim to contribute to an emerging literature that studies the relation between far-right populist rhetoric and actions on climate change policy. The idea is to analyse whether Jair Bolsonaro brings new tactics to the playbook of autocratic leaders, and if so which types. While political dynamics in Hungary, Poland and the USA have all been studied to establish the links between populist politics and climate inaction, there is still room to broaden the view to countries of the Global South. Continue reading >>
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08 September 2022
Pakistan’s Call for Climate Reparations
Torrential monsoon rains have triggered Pakistan’s worst floods this century. So far, at least 1,300 people have been killed and a third of the country is under flood waters. Entire villages have been washed away and an estimated three million children are in need of humanitarian assistance. Against this backdrop, Pakistan’s minister for climate change has called for rich nations to pay reparations to developing States suffering climate loss and damage. In this blog post, I will put the claims for climate reparations in an international law context. Continue reading >>03 September 2022
Czechia’s First Climate Judgment
Czechia’s first climate change lawsuit ended with a small sensation. On the hot summer day of 15th June, the Municipal Court in Prague ruled that four Czech Ministries violated the plaintiffs‘ right to a favourable environment. The violation consists in the omission to set any concrete mitigation measures that would lead to reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by the year 2030 compared to the year 1990. As the Urgenda Climate Case and other landmark judgments have paved the way for climate action around the world, this first noteworthy ruling of the region blazed the trail specifically for other courts in Central and Eastern Europe. Continue reading >>
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31 August 2022
Win or Lose, Chile’s Draft Constitution Heralds a New Era of Climate Constitutionalism
On September 4, Chileans will vote on whether to adopt a new constitution. It is a deeply contested election. Polls show that the yes vote is trailing by roughly 10% points, but with over 15% of voters still undecided, as of last week. The debate over the new text has centered on questions of the balance of powers, the autonomy of indigenous people, and the participation of the private sector in the provision of social security, health, and education. But one of the most innovative features of the text is not getting enough attention domestically – its deep engagement with environmentalism, and with climate change in particular. Continue reading >>12 August 2022
Extra-Constitutional Commitment Mechanisms
The solution to many public dilemmas requires long-term effort by successive generations. Such situation arises whenever the solution to a public dilemma cannot be implemented instantaneously but is dependent on the continuous effort of future governments (and their citizens). In this post I discuss the problem of securing intergenerational cooperation, focusing on the challenge of designing long-term commitment mechanisms. I will also reflect briefly on the tension between commitment mechanisms and the democratic ideal of citizen sovereignty (allowing each generation to make its own choices). Continue reading >>
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