CHR-NI-2016-0001 Supplementary Memorandum by Resource Person, Katherine Lofts Deciding in favour of the petitioners, the District Court found that the government’s existing mitigation pledge was insufficient to meet the Netherlands’ fair share of emissions reductions in line with the UNFCCC goal of keeping global temperature rise within two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. In arriving at this conclusion, the court drew on a range of legal principles, including Article 21 of the Dutch Constitution (on the fundamental right to the protection and improvement of the environment), and on principles under the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). The Dutch government appealed the decision. On Oct 9, 2018, the Court of Appeal upheld the District Court's ruling, finding that by failing to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 25% by 2020, the Dutch government is acting unlawfully in contravention of its duty of care under Article 2 (the right to life) and Article 8 (the right to private and family life, home, and correspondence) of the ECHR. The court held that the government has an obligation under the ECHR to protect these rights from the threat of climate change. (5) VZW Klimaatzaak v. Kingdom of Belgium & Others Filing date: 2015 Status: Decided Jurisdictions: Belgium (Brussels, Court of First Instance) This case was brought by an organization of concerned citizens seeking to force the federal and regional governments to act to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The plaintiffs argued that Belgian law required the government to take a more aggressive approach in reducing emissions, calling for reductions of 40% below 1990 levels by 2020 and 87.5% below 1990 levels by 2050. The plaintiffs also asserted that failure to reduce emissions constituted a violation of human rights laws. To date, there has been no decision on the merits of the case, although the court has issued a ruling on procedural matters raised by the Flemish region. This decision has been appealed by the regional government. (6) Leghari v. Federation of Pakistan Date: 2015 Reporter information: (2015) W.P. No. 25501/201 Status: Granted Jurisdictions: Pakistan (Punjab, Lahore High Court) The claimant, a Pakistani farmer, sued the national government for failure to carry out the National Climate Change Policy of 2012 and the Framework for Implementation of Climate Change Policy (2014-2030). The appellate court granted the claims, drawing on both domestic and international legal principles to determine that the State’s delay in implementing the Framework infringed on the fundamental rights of Pakistani citizens, including the right to life, the right to a healthy and clean environment, and the right to human dignity. As a remedy, the court ordered several government ministries, departments and authorities to each nominate a climate change focal person within their institutions to help ensure the implementation of the Framework, and to present a list of 3