TY - JOUR

T1 - Litigating climate change in the Arctic: the potential of Sámi human rights claims

AU - Nordlander, Linnéa

PY - 2022

Y1 - 2022

N2 - This article explores the prospects of human rights litigation over climate change impacts felt in the Arctic, examining especially whether the impacts experienced by Sámi individuals in the European Arctic can be framed as human rights violations in the context of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). As one of Europe’s few Indigenous peoples, the Sámi are uniquely vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change, with inhabitants of the Arctic being on the frontlines of experiencing its impacts. Sámi representatives have engaged in unsuccessful mitigation litigation on the basis of these impacts. The present article builds on previous litigation initiatives by exploring an alternative litigation avenue in order to assess its potential. In doing so, the article outlines the ways in which climate change has been reported to interfere with Sámi cultural practices to date. Given that the ECHR does not contain explicit rights to culture or group rights, the article examines whether these impacts can be framed in terms of the individualistic civil and political rights that the Convention covers. The article therefore examines the possibilities of framing these impacts in terms of the prohibition of ill treatment (art 3), the right to respect for private and family life (art 8), and the right to non-discrimination (art 14).

AB - This article explores the prospects of human rights litigation over climate change impacts felt in the Arctic, examining especially whether the impacts experienced by Sámi individuals in the European Arctic can be framed as human rights violations in the context of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). As one of Europe’s few Indigenous peoples, the Sámi are uniquely vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change, with inhabitants of the Arctic being on the frontlines of experiencing its impacts. Sámi representatives have engaged in unsuccessful mitigation litigation on the basis of these impacts. The present article builds on previous litigation initiatives by exploring an alternative litigation avenue in order to assess its potential. In doing so, the article outlines the ways in which climate change has been reported to interfere with Sámi cultural practices to date. Given that the ECHR does not contain explicit rights to culture or group rights, the article examines whether these impacts can be framed in terms of the individualistic civil and political rights that the Convention covers. The article therefore examines the possibilities of framing these impacts in terms of the prohibition of ill treatment (art 3), the right to respect for private and family life (art 8), and the right to non-discrimination (art 14).

U2 - 10.4337/jhre.2022.02.05

DO - 10.4337/jhre.2022.02.05

M3 - Journal article

VL - 13

SP - 416

EP - 440

JO - Journal of Human Rights and the Environment

JF - Journal of Human Rights and the Environment

SN - 1759-7188

IS - 2

ER -