Linnéa Nordlander

What do you research?

My main area of expertise is the intersection of climate change and human rights in international law. My current research focuses on the potential of international human rights law to push states to meet the 1.5°C temperature target set by the Paris Agreement. Specifically, I explore whether human rights law imposes specific obligations with respect to GHG emissions reductions, as well as how human rights law is and can be used to advance state ambition on mitigation. In addition, I research the interconnections between human rights and climate change loss and damage, considering the gap-filling function that human rights can play in securing remedies for those adversely affected by climate change.

Why is it so important?

This research is important due to the general inadequacy of state action on mitigating climate change, but also the lack of preparedness to address impacts when they manifest. With respect to mitigation, understanding both the substance of human rights norms that already bind highemitting states, as well as the ways in which they can be used, can be imperative in ensuring that warming is kept within safe levels, in light of the recalcitrance of many such states. The prospects of this has already been demonstrated by litigation in several countries, with courts finding that a given state’s mitigation policy is misaligned with their human rights obligations. Despite the inadequacy of mitigation ambition and thus the inevitability of climate change impacts, international climate change law has no mechanisms to address impacts. My research on the links between human rights and loss and damage seeks to understand how this remedial gap can be filled.

A project you are proud of

I am especially proud of my forthcoming book, ‘Human Rights and Climate Change: The Law on Loss and Damage’ (Routledge), based on my PhD thesis, which is the first piece of scholarship offering establishing the link between human rights and loss and damage, thus offering a comprehensive understanding of the legal implications of individual climate harm in international law. The book will be particularly relevant in light of the recent decision to establish funding arrangements for loss and damage for the first time at COP27.

Updated January 2023

Through her participation in the Mary Centre’s Policy Fellowship, Linnéa has among others worked with Cecilie Fenger Michaelsen, Team Leader at the Department for Green Diplomacy and Climate at Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Policy Fellowship 2022-23 – Green Transition), and Paolo Perotti, Chief Legal Officer at Ministry of Enviroment (Policy Fellowship 2022-23 – Green Transition) as well as Simon Wandel-Petersen, Deputy Director at the Department for Green Diplomacy and Climate at Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Policy Fellowship 2023-24 – Green Transition).