Support the KlimaSeniorinnen in their fight for Climate Justice!
UPDATE: We’re celebrating a landmark victory at Europe’s highest court. But the battle isn’t over!
Next stop: the International Court of Justice. Please add your name to support.
Senior Women demanding:“Protect our human rights in the face of the climate crisis!”
The climate crisis threatens lives, livelihoods and health globally for people in vulnerable situations. Yet States are failing to take ambitious action to safeguard health, lives and livelihoods. That’s why more and more people are turning to the courts for protection.
A courageous group of senior women in Switzerland, the KlimaSeniorinnen, are among those leading the way. But they need your support. Senior women suffer especially from more frequent and intense heat waves – and Switzerland must do its share to keep global heating below 1.5ºC.
After exhausting all national options, they have turned to the European Court of Human Rights. The Court’s decision, delivered on 9 April, has set a crucial legal precedent, one that would establish States’ human rights obligations in the context of climate change. But the battle isn’t over! Next stop: the International Court of Justice.
The women behind this groundbreaking legal case will be there. Please add your name now to show support.
What happened so far
The KlimaSeniorinnen took the Swiss government to court to protect their basic rights to life and private and family life. The Swiss courts refused to listen. So the Senior women took their government to the European Court of Human Rights. They are part of a global wave of cases seeking climate justice through the courts, demanding that governments and polluting corporations are held accountable for their failures to act.
Why is this important?
The KlimaSeniorinnen case is the first climate change case the European Court of Human Rights held a hearing for! The Court will determine if Switzerland failed in its duties to mitigate the climate crisis to safeguard human rights. On the same day, the Court will rule on two other climate cases and define its stance on government obligations to protect people from the biggest threat to human rights. The Court’s human rights rulings are legally binding, with a massive impact on the potential to protect present and future generations from further climate destruction. These women are changing the world!
The Senior Women for Climate Protection (KlimaSeniorinnen) are making history
For the first time, a climate case was heard at the European Court of Human Rights. The KlimaSeniorinnens formed in 2016 with the support of Greenpeace. As older women, they are particularly affected by the increasing heat waves and are thus entitled to claim their right to life and health. The ECtHR will decide whether there is a human rights obligation to protect the climate seniors. And ideally, it will also determine how much Switzerland must do to uphold human rights.