‘Governments need to address the climate crisis, not the courts’

Legislators across Europe should pay close attention to the landmark ruling of the European Court of Human Rights against Switzerland, says an expert on international climate cases. The decision against Switzerland may not be the only one creating a sensation. Switzerland is not doing enough to protect its citizens from the negative impacts of climate change. This was ruled by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in Strasbourg. In early April, the court reprimanded the federal government for violating the fundamental rights of a group of elderly women, who are particularly vulnerable to heatwaves. It was the first time the ECHR’S ruled on a climate lawsuit, with ramifications for all 46 countries of the Council of Europe and potentially worldwide. The importance of this case cannot be overstated, Tiffanie Chan, a policy analyst at the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, tells SWI swissinfo.ch. The London-based institute publishes an annual report ...