A group formed by Portuguese youngsters between the ages of 8 and 21 have decided to sue, that is, take legal action against 33 European countries. According to the group, these countries have contributed to an increase in global warming. The charge was brought to the European Court of Human Rights on September 3^rd. The court is responsible for checking if countries are observing human rights. According to the young people, climate change can affect their future and that of generations to come and stop their rights from being upheld.

This is the first time that this court has received a climate change case. The lawsuit has the support of the non-governmental organization (NGO) The Global Legal Action Network (GLAN). According to the director of GLAN, the goal is to force European countries make more firm decisions to reduce global warming.

Among the countries accused by the group are Portugal, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Russia, and Spain.

When the lawsuit became public, the group held a video call and commented on the process. During the conversation, they talked about what motivated them. “… as I get older, I will be exposed to violent heatwaves that will last for several weeks, and it scares me a lot,” said Catarina Mota, 20.

Catarina and another participant, Cláudia Agostinho, 21, live in Leiria, in Portugal.  In the summer of 2017, forest fires there left more than 115 dead. Although science is still unclear about whether the flames were related to global warming, some experts say that climate change has led to a decrease in rainfall in the area, which could have increased the likelihood of fires such as the one in 2017.

Sources: Folha de S. Paulo and Glanlaw.

Questions

1) Why are young people suing European countries?

a) So nations take on a more aggressive stance towards combating climate change
b) So countries fight fires in Portugal
c) To make young people aware of the importance of talking about global warming
d) To prove that the fires that took place in Portugal are tied to global warming

2) What did you think about what the young people did? Why?

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