Vermont: A New Hope

A little over a week ago, Vermont enacted the first law requiring carbon polluters to pay to clean up the damage caused by climate change, putting the money into a fund for adaptation and resilience measures. We bring back Dana Drugmand of One Earth Now and Loes van Dijk of Climate Court to talk about the implications the law might have globally, its prospects for surviving the attacks on the attribution science underlying it - which we detailed last week, and other climate litigation around the world - including a French prosecutor being asked to charge the board and management of Total with criminal charges including manslaughter.

Segment 1: Interview with Dana Drugmand

03:47 Dana Drugmand discusses Vermont's new law

04:22 how the law passed

07:48 first of its kind globally and its potential impact

12:29 expected legal challenges.

Segment 2: Broader Implications and Reactions

19:34 could such a law have passed without recent severe flooding in Vermont?

20:33 broader trend of climate accountability laws

Segment 3: Interview with Loes van Dijk

23:48 Introduction to Loes van Dijk and her work with Climate Court

24:09 importance of climate litigation for addressing climate change

24:45 Urgenda case in the Netherlands

25:40 the Peruvian farmer vs. RWE.

Segment 4: Legal Strategies and Future Outlook

26:58 power of tort law in climate litigation,

30:38 the Republican attorneys generals' attempt to block state-level climate litigation in the U.S. Supreme Court.

32:06 role of attribution science in proving climate change causality

33:50 Loes's reaction to Vermont's law, focusing on the need for a global legal mechanism to address climate change.

Segment 5: Broader Legal and Political Context

44:29 Exploration of the potential for criminal charges against corporate executives for climate-related damages, focusing on a case against Total in France.

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Credits:

* Host: Richard Delevan

* Guests: Dana Drugmand, Loes van Dijk

* Production Assistance: Theodore Delevan

* Music: Suncharmer and check out our playlist for other tunes

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