Science in Climate Litigation – Epistemic Communities at work

Epistemic communities
is a term used by political scientist Peter Haas to describe networks of knowledge-based experts who enjoy social authority, and who attempt – and sometimes succeed – in having their ideas institutionalized within state policies and practices, including international treaties. In the context of the 1,587 climate change cases that have burgeoned worldwide, the role of epistemic communities is crucial: natural scientists help shape litigation by supporting lawyers and NGOs in understanding and mobilizing science for climate justice. But is the process that simple? How do these networks of knowledge work when science proves challenging, for instance to attribute specific climate effects to fossil fuel companies? Are courts becoming epistemic fora where international climate science is integrated in the legal reasoning through bottom-up pressure? Can climate science help expand traditionally anthropocentric concepts, such as human rights, to also encompass Nature and make Nature rights enforceable against companies?

Watch the webinar on YouTube.

Roundtable moderated by

Siri Gloppen
(UiB/LawTran

sform) with

Randall Abate
(Monmouth University),

Yann Robiou du Pont
(IDDRI),

Kikki Kleiven
(UiB) and

César Rodriíguez-Garavito
(NYU School of Law).

Photo by
USGS
on
Unsplash