Young activists lobby for Australian law on climate harm

A group of young activists lobbied Australian lawmakers on Thursday for legislation that would oblige the government to consider how emissions-intensive projects could harm future generations before approving or funding them.
The legislation would insert a “duty of care” into Australian law, forcing government to consider whether new fossil fuel projects would aggravate global warming and raise the risk of events such as fires or floods.
It grew out of a court battle in which eight schoolchildren argued that the expansion of a coal mine run by Whitehaven Coal would contribute to climate change and endanger their future.
The federal court ruled against the children in 2022.
Australia is a major exporter of coal and natural gas.
Several youth activists, the youngest a 16-year-old from School Strike for Climate, spoke to a senate committee on Thursday.
It was “exhilarating”, said Anjali Sharma, a 19-year-old university student who was one of those behind the Whitehaven lawsuit.