After a two-year legal battle, Hawaii has reached a groundbreaking settlement with 13 children and teens who sued the state over the threat posed by climate change. The settlement includes a requirement to decarbonize Hawaii's transportation system over the next 21 years, making it the world's first youth-led constitutional climate case addressing climate pollution from the transportation sector.
The lawsuit highlighted the impact of climate change on the plaintiffs, including reduced crop yields from extreme weather events and the threat of rising sea levels submerging their lands. The settlement, signed by First Circuit Court Judge John M. Tonaki, mandates Hawaii to achieve zero greenhouse gas emissions across all transportation modes by 2045 and develop a greenhouse gas reduction plan within a year.
