Florida Youth Sue for Right to a Stable Climate

The eight Florida youth, who two years ago filed suit, get a hearing today in a Leon County Courtroom. The youth are challenging Florida’s continuing use of fossil fuels despite knowing of its contributions to climate change, thus violating the constitutional rights of Florida’s youth. The plaintiffs’ lawyer says if Florida were a country, it would be the 27th largest emitter of carbon dioxide in the world, having emitted 235.1 million metric tons in 2016 alone. Florida ranks third in the US in both energy and electricity consumption. Although the state has almost year-round sunshine, only 3 percent of its energy is produced via renewables, lagging far behind the US national average of 15 percent.  

One of the plaintiffs, 16-year old Lushia Phillips, identifies as a ‘climate refugee’, having been displaced by 2017’s hurricane Irma. Raised by just her single mother with no financial resources, Phillips says they had no option but to leave Florida once the storm destroyed their lives. She says the state of Florida should be held accountable as a safeguard against future ‘climate refugees.’ She says she knows first-hand how difficult it is to be driven from your home and wants to protect others from a similar fate. (WMNF)

Analysis

Clearly, Florida’s climate displaced are not refugees under the existing definition, which requires a person to have fled their countries for reasons of persecution on the basis of race, religion, nationality, political opinion or membership in a particular social group. The principle behind international refugee law is protection. Protection from the harm of conflict and persecution innocent civilians have no role in creating nor sustaining. In the same vein, climate displaced populations face the same need for protection when the impacts of climate change threaten their lives and livelihoods. So while we debate terminology, certainly contextually important and appropriate, it should not be at the detriment of overlooking the important points of protection for so many climate displaced, whether displaced within or across borders by climate change.