[Call for Abstracts, Programme & Registration] Symposium: Ending the Climate Crisis through Rights-Based Climate Litigation? Trends, Challenges and Opportunities

The Human Rights and the Climate Crisis Working Group will host its inaugural symposium on Wednesday, 20 November - Thursday, 21 November 2024 at the Netherlands Institute of Human Rights (SIM), Utrecht. The event will examine recent developments in rights-based climate litigation in the Netherlands, in Europe and beyond, as well as explore opportunities for further cutting-edge research on the topic. Join us for expert presentations, analysis, discussion, and research planning for 2025!

We invite abstracts for presentations on key trends, opportunities or challenges for climate litigation in the near future, for one of the panels, on a range of themes of interest to the Working Group on Human Rights and Climate Crisis, including but not limited to:

• Litigating the Rights of Nature 
• Understanding eco-anxiety / mental health as driver for litigation, especially amongst youth
• Impacts of ECHR climate cases, e.g. standing / role for environmental NGOs; challenges for standing for individual victims
• Impacts of international and regional Advisory Opinions
• Limitations of individual rights-based perspectives on the climate crisis
• Litigating climate change in populist times
• Non-Western / non-Eurocentric perspectives on climate litigation
• Litigation regarding equality / non-discrimination of different vulnerable groups 

Please send proposals (500 words) for a panel presentation by 15 September to Dr Marlies Hesselman (m.m.e.hesselman@rug.nl). Selected speakers will be informed by 24 September.

Participation is open to NNHRR members, students, researchers, NGO representatives. Interdisciplinary perspectives are welcome! There is no charge to participate. Lunch and refreshments will be provided. Support for transport & accommodation is available for NNHRR members from outside Utrecht attending both days.

See the full programme here and register your attendance via this form.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to email David Patterson (d.w.patterson@rug.nl).