21 teenagers are asking a US court to hold the government responsible for violating their constitutional rights to life, liberty, property and equal protection under the law as well as their right to benefit from the public trust, which they argue includes the atmosphere. The challenge is part of a larger group of cases being brought across the country by environmental group Earthjustice against the Trump administration over its rollback of Obama-era climate change regulations.
21 teenagers are asking a US court to hold the government responsible for violating their constitutional rights to life, liberty, property and equal protection under the law as well as their right to benefit from the public trust, which they argue includes the atmosphere. The challenge is part of a larger group of cases being brought across the country by environmental group Our Children’s Trust and others fighting the federal and state governments by seeking damages from climate change-related harms or citing a violation of the public trust doctrine, through which the government owns resources in trust for public use.