Hague climate change judgement could inspire a global civil movement

Dutch ruling could trigger similar cases worldwide with citizens taking their governments to courts to make them act on climate promises

"You have been negotiating all my life", cried out 21-year-old Anjali Appadurai from the lectern of a UN climate change conference four years ago. The activist, speaking on behalf of her nation's youth, could have speaking for anyone who has taken a mild interest in more than two decades of international negotiations on climate change and stood aghast as world leaders have failed to protect the most basic of human rights - to exist.

But today, thanks to 886 Dutch citizens who decided to sue their government, all of that may change. We may not have to wait for the politicians to save us - the lawyers may step in instead. In the first successful case of its kind, a judge in the Hague has ruled that the Dutch government's stance on climate change is illegal and has ordered them to take action to cut greenhouse gas emissions by a hefty 25% within five years.