The High Court of Justice in the Pakistani city of Lahore mandated the creation of a climate council that will require the Pakistani government to meet its environmental commitments. The case that prompted the rule was brought by a farmer named Asghar Leghari who claimed that Pakistan had violated his fundamental rights due to lack of action on climate change. In May 2015, the United Nations determined that Pakistan is one of the countries most vulnerable to climate change. Pakistan has been pummeled by floods and heat waves in recent years, which have been devastating to the large swath of Pakistani people that are dependent on agriculture for their livelihood. The judge ruled that the Pakistani government had not taken tangible steps to realize the climate change policy that was passed in 2012 and stated that, “for Pakistan, climate change is no longer a distant threat – we are already feeling and experiencing its impacts.” In a similar ruling earlier this year, a coalition argued that the Dutch government had violated the human rights of its citizens because of inaction around climate change. The Dutch court ordered that the government cut greenhouse gas emissions by 25% by 2020 compared to 1990 levels. For the full story, see http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/oct/07/pakistan-high-court-comes-to-defence-of-climate