On August 12, 2015, a group of American youth all under the age of 21, filed a lawsuit against the Department of Energy’s decision to approve the construction of a liquified natural gas (LNG) terminal in Coos Bay, Oregon. This project also raised high concerns with the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians. This case, Juliana v U.S. filed by Our Children’s Trust on behalf of the youth, argued that the U.S. government’s ongoing support for fossil fuel extraction and exportation, and its failure at any effort in mitigating climate change—demonstrated by its approval of the Oregon LNG terminal—violated their rights under the Fifth and Ninth Amendments under the US Constitution and the Public Trust Doctrine (a legal principle establishing that certain natural and cultural resources are preserved for public use and the public’s right to sue to enforce it).
Levi Draheim, then a UU of Florida, was the youngest of the plaintiffs at 10 years-old. Since that initial filing ten years ago, there have been several peaks and valleys in the judicial process, including 22 different attempts by opponents, especially the Department of Justice, to stall or eject the case from the judicial process. You can view the timeline here.
Though the Coos Bay LNG project was permanently cancelled in 2022, Juliana continues through the judicial process because of its significance to our youth and their future.
Our Children’s Trust also pursues youth climate cases against the States including Aji P. V. State of Washington that has not succeeded and Held v. State of Montana (https://heldvmontana.ourchildrenstrust.org) which did succeed n 2023 in district Montana court now being appealed to Montana State. Supreme Court
Other resources
Our Children’s Trust, https://www.ourchildrenstrust.org
UU Youth Levi Draheim! Levi was the youngest plaintiff in Juliana v US. Read more here: https://www.uuworld.org/articles/youth-gates-climate-lawsuit
YOUTH v GOV is the story of America’s youth taking on the world’s most powerful government. Armed with a wealth of evidence, twenty-one courageous leaders file a ground-breaking lawsuit against the U.S. government, asserting it has willfully acted over six decades to create the climate crisis, thus endangering their constitutional rights
