Monday 30 January 2023

Expert Workshop on Climate Change, Human Rights and ECHR

On 14 April 2023, the European University Institute (EUI) is hosting an expert workshop in Florence on Climate Change Cases before Human Rights Courts and Treaty Bodies. The workshop, organized by the Law Department of the EUI together with the PluriCourts Centre of Excellence of the  University of Oslo and the IUCN World Commission on Environmental Law, focuses on human rights litigation before the United Nations human rights treaty bodies and regional human rights courts as a means of combating climate change. The workshop will, amongst others, discuss the pending climate change cases before the Grand Chamber of the ECtHR (Duarte Agostinho and Others v. Portugal and 32 other states; Carême v. France, Verein KlimaSeniorinnen Schweiz and Others v. Switzerland). The workshop will be followed by a PhD Colloquium on 15 April 2023. 

Here is a brief description of the workshop:

'Climate change is one of the main challenges facing humanity today. Without rapid and decisive action, it will be the main challenge, an existential threat to people and other living organisms. There are many approaches to combating climate change, including intergovernmental negotiations and action through international organizations, social mobilization and protest, efforts to engage corporations and the business community to cut greenhouse gas emissions, and searching through the repository of law for tools that could be used to compel the unwilling. This one-day expert workshop followed by a PhD colloquium will focus on legal tools in the field of human rights and the prospects of human rights litigation for turning the tide of climate change. While taking into account developments in domestic law, general international law and international environmental law, the event will in particular explore developments in and prospects of human rights litigation before regional human rights courts and international human rights treaty bodies in trying to address climate change and its adverse effects as they constitute or cause human rights violations. 

The expert workshop of Friday 14 April will run in the format of plenary sessions from 9.00 to 18.30 and include a lunch break and two coffee breaks. The PhD colloquium of 15 April will be from 9.00 until 12.30, based on papers and presentations by PhD researchers.'

The program can be found here