Human Rights and Climate Change LAW-802

This is a three-week course on the human rights dimensions of the climate crisis and the increasing use of international human rights law frameworks in international litigation related to the climate crisis, as well as the role that various international courts and tribunals play in litigating and arbitrating the climate crisis. The course will draw from the instructor’s experience as a practicing human rights attorney who has represented States, individuals, and State-owned and private entities in a range of matters implicating international environmental law, international human rights law, and the intersection between the two before a wide range of international courts and tribunals. The instructor will share lessons from practice on advocating for a human rights-based approach to the climate crisis.

Classes will take the form of a seminar/roundtable discussion. We will also be joined by guest lecturers, including from the leading lawyers from the United Nations, academia, NGOs, and private practice. This course will conclude with a final exam in the form of a paper.

Instructor: Christina Hioureas