The development of the UN CRC’s approach to children and climate change: any impact on the future of youth-led climate litigation?

Abstract

On August 22, 2023, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child published General Comment No. 26 on Children’s Rights and the Environment, with a Special Focus on Climate Change (GC26). This GC is remarkable for being the first one entirely dedicated to environmental and climate protection in light of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. This contribution aims to explore the role of GC26 in the practice of the Committee in light of its first – and so far, only – decision in this regard, Sacchi et al. v. Argentina et al., and positions it in the context of youth-led climate litigation which reached a breakthrough since the Committee’s 2021 decision. The article also assesses the potential impact of GC26 on ongoing and future climate change cases and points out what could be done in order to enforce the perspective of future generations in the context of climate change