Campaigners at Friends of the Irish Environment (FIE) have filed an historic climate change lawsuit against the Government.

Will you be part of it?

Click here to add your name to the list of people who stand in support of this case. Tell the Government that this Climate Case is in your name too.

Background

Ireland’s emissions per person are among the highest in the EU. Overall, emissions in Ireland are set to have increased by almost 10% between 1990 and 2020. This is way out of step with the big cuts in emissions that the Government itself has acknowledged are necessary to help stop dangerous climate change. It’s especially alarming that the Government is failing to act with the required ambition when the consequences of climate change, like ex-Hurricane Ophelia, are already hitting home. That’s why the Government is being taken to court.

The case is inspired by global climate litigation, including a landmark case in which Dutch citizens successfully sued their Government for climate inaction, and is the first of its kind in Ireland. It will be heard by the High Court within the next year and will be building on FIE's milestone establishment in 2017 of a Constitutional right to an environment consistent with human dignity.

Three things you can do right now to join and support this groundbreaking campaign:

1. Share the video below on facebook to promote the case, letting the Government to know that this case is for all of us. 
2. Share the Climate Case Ireland website on your social media channels.
3. Retweet the campaign, or tweet yourself. Below are some sample tweets that you can copy and paste. The hashtags to use are #ClimateCaseIreland and #InMyName.
   
   > Groundbreaking #ClimateCaseIreland: @climatecaseire is holding the Government of Ireland accountable for its climate inaction, this lawsuit is #InMyName www.climatecaseireland.ie
   
   > Dear @campaignforleo, #ClimateCaseIreland is also #InMyName www.climatecaseireland.ie> Ireland has among the highest per capita carbon emissions in the EU, and they’re still rising. That's why I support #ClimateCaseIreland #InMyName www.climatecaseireland.ie
   
   > I want Ireland to do its part to stop dangerous climate change. I support #ClimateCaseIreland and this case in #InMyName www.climatecaseireland.ie

Sadhbh O’Neill, Friends of the Irish Environment: "Ireland’s per capita emissions are among the highest in the EU, and our emissions are projected to increase by 7.5-10% by 2020 compared to 1990. This is the opposite of what’s needed: to help avoid dangerous climate change, Ireland has recognised that it needs to reduce its emissions by 25-40% by 2020 compared to 1990. We’re asking the Government to revise its National Mitigation Plan to make it consistent with Ireland's international obligations.”

Dennis van Berkel, Legal Counselto the Urgenda Foundation, stated, “Our case proved that all governments have a legal duty to protect their citizens against climate change by doing their part to lower emissions. Governments all over the world, including in Belgium, Switzerland, the UK, the US, Colombia, and New Zealand are being held legally accountable for their climate inaction, and all eyes will now be on what unfolds in Ireland.”

Campaigns like this win because of public pressure. A new report from the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment counts more than 1,000 climate cases that have been filed worldwide, and confirms that these cases could have a significant impact in holding governments accountable for climate change.

Climate change is happening, and it is impacting most those who have done the least to cause it. Ireland needs to step up and do its fair share.

P.S. For a primer on this case and how it came about, watch this 7 minute video.