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Seniors rock !! - yes we can make a difference!
In case you missed it, on April 9th the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) handed down its first judgement on climate change as a human rights issue. The decision came in response to a lawsuit filed by a group of older Swiss women, KlimaSeniorinnen Schweiz (all 2,200 members age 64 +) against the Swiss Government for the government's failure to take sufficient policy action to limit climate change. The women argued that as senior citizens they suffer a disproportionate impact of climate change on their health. The Court's decision is likely to have major 'downstream' impacts in national courts where similar lawsuits are pending.
On the down side, the case brought by six Portuguese young people against 31 European states was dismissed by the Court on the grounds that while a state's greenhouse gas emissions may have an adverse impact on people living outside its borders, it did not justify prosecuting a case across multiple jurisdictions. That case may now need to go back to national courts.
Click here for the article
Excerpt:
"Reports by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, among others, show that the Swiss population of senior women — especially those over 75 — are more prone to heat-related medical problems like “dehydration, hyperthermia, fatigue, loss of consciousness, heat cramps and heat strokes,” according to the group. Within Switzerland, they are also the most vulnerable to exacerbated health problems, including respiratory, cardiovascular, and kidney problems in excessive heat.
“We are aware that older men, people with diseases as well as small children also suffer from heat waves and other climate effects,” the group wrote on its website. “By focusing on the proven particular susceptibility of us older women we are simply enhancing our lawsuit’s chances of success which is ultimately good for everyone.”
Excerpt:
"Reports by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, among others, show that the Swiss population of senior women — especially those over 75 — are more prone to heat-related medical problems like “dehydration, hyperthermia, fatigue, loss of consciousness, heat cramps and heat strokes,” according to the group. Within Switzerland, they are also the most vulnerable to exacerbated health problems, including respiratory, cardiovascular, and kidney problems in excessive heat.
“We are aware that older men, people with diseases as well as small children also suffer from heat waves and other climate effects,” the group wrote on its website. “By focusing on the proven particular susceptibility of us older women we are simply enhancing our lawsuit’s chances of success which is ultimately good for everyone.”
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