Our Children’s Trust Represents Young People In Wisconsin In Climate Suit

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Last Updated on: 24th August 2025, 06:53 pm

CleanTechnica readers will be familiar with Our Children’s Trust, a public interest law firm that specializes in bringing legal challenges on behalf of young clients. Dr. James Hansen, the noted NASA scientist who first testified in front of the US Congress about the connection between carbon dioxide and a warming, has been a vocal advocate for the group’s work.

In fact, his granddaughter was one of the young plaintiffs in the groundbreaking case of Juliana Vs. US, which sought to obtain a ruling that the federal government has a duty to protect the lives and health of its citizens, a position that is bitterly opposed by the fossil fuel industry.

Our Children’s Trust did achieve a milestone victory in Montana recently. Section 1 of Article IX of the Montana constitution says specifically:

• The state and each person shall maintain and improve a clean and healthful environment in Montana for present and future generations.
• The legislature shall provide for the administration and enforcement of this duty.
• The legislature shall provide adequate remedies for the protection of the environmental life support system from degradation and provide adequate remedies to prevent unreasonable depletion and degradation of natural resources.

The Montana Supreme Court has now ruled that section means precisely what it says and has invalidated laws passed by the state’s legislature that were designed to limit the application of Article IX.

Wisconsin Lawsuit Challenges PSC Rules

Now Our Children’s Trust has teamed up with an environmental law firm in Wisconsin called Midwest Environmental Advocates to represent a group of 15 young Wisconsin residents in a legal action that seeks to invalidate two state statutes. They claim those statures unfairly benefit fossil fuel powered thermal electricity generation and limit the amount of renewable energy available within the state.

In addition, the lawsuit alleges the continued use of fossil fuels in energy generation is harming their young plaintiffs’ basic constitutional rights and creating an unstable future for them. The case was filed on August 22 against the Public Service Commission and the state legislature.

“The science around how climate change is going to affect Wisconsin is clear. It’s affecting us now. It’s only going to get worse, and it will get worse if Wisconsin keeps pumping greenhouse gases into the atmosphere,” Tony Wilkin-Gibart, the executive director of MEA and one of the lawyers for the case, told the press.

“We believe that (their constitutional rights are) being violated by the state continuing to pump greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere and drive the climate crisis in ways that are harming our clients and profoundly disrupting their ways of life and jeopardizing the stability of their future,” Wilkin Gibart said, according to a report by Wisconsin Public Radio.

“Our clients are asking the court to uphold their right to a livable future,” he said. “This case is about whether they will inherit a future shaped by clean energy and a stable climate — or one burdened by fossil fuel pollution, extreme weather events, and growing threats to their health and safety.”

Favoring Fossil Fuels

Specifically, one Wisconsin law today prevents the state’s public service commission from considering toxic and planet-heating air pollution when considering permits for new fossil fuel power plants, while another bars the PSC from requiring utilities to increase the amount of electricity they obtain from carbon-free sources.

“These laws set up a system where the public service commission continues to approve fossil fuel power plants and cannot bring online more renewable energy,” Nate Bellinger, supervising staff attorney at Our Children’s Trust, told The Guardian. Wisconsin has pledged to transition to 100 percent carbon-free electricity by 2050, but those laws are diametrically opposed to implementing that policy initiative.

“The state legislature and the executive branch have both set goals and mandates to decarbonize the electricity sector,” said Bellinger. “These laws are getting in the way of that.” He claimed the laws in Wisconsin are ripe for a challenge. “The case is really a challenge to the electricity sector in Wisconsin, which is still predominantly powered by fossil fuels, and there’s a lot of opportunity there to transition that to renewables,” he said.

The lawsuit criticizes the PSC for not requiring utilities to invest more than 10% in renewable energy and points to policies in Wisconsin that give fossil fuels like coal and natural gas an edge when it comes to choosing and developing new power plants. Fossil fuels provide about 75 percent of Wisconsin’s electricity today.

“The trends that we’re seeing in Wisconsin are so profound, and the impacts of climate change are affecting Wisconsinites right now,” Wilkin-Gibart said. “We’re on track for a record number of smoke-filled days this summer. This entire summer has been marked by thoughts and anxiety about whether young people, and frankly any Wisconsinites, can go out and exercise and spend time with family.”

Health Risks

The complaint claims the young plaintiffs are exposed to a greater incidence of health risks, including asthma and respiratory illnesses made worse by increases in average temperatures and air pollution, flooding of their homes and communities, and mental health trauma tied to ecological loss and extreme weather events. Perhaps the latest study that shows climate-related pollution contributes to over 90,000 premature deaths in the US each year will bolster their case.

“We’re in a situation here in the state where we have state laws that tell our Public Service Commission to completely ignore these climate impacts, to completely ignore what our clients are experiencing, and to completely ignore the fate of these young people and future generations,” Wilkin-Gibart said.

Ted Schultz-Becker is one of the young plaintiffs. He said in a press release reported by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that the lawsuit represents a chance to have the voices of Wisconsin youth heard. “These laws force my government to ignore science and pollution. That’s wrong and unconstitutional. Young people have power, even when we can’t vote. Our voices matter, and we trust our Constitution and courts to protect us.”

The attorneys are asking a judge to strike down state laws that limit consideration of climate effects and cap renewable energy requirements when regulators determine whether to approve or deny new projects. They want a judge to rule the laws violate their clients’ constitutional rights and find that the Public Service Commission and Legislature have a duty to protect the health and welfare of the young plaintiffs.

Republican Pushback

The lawsuit is likely to face opposition from the Republican-controlled Legislature and its top leaders. Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Robin Vos is on record as saying that climate change “probably” is real. Wisconsin Democrats have repeatedly introduced a package of bills to combat climate change and shift to clean energy, but Vos has said such efforts are only “pandering to the very liberal base.” Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu has said such legislation would only “triple down on the ‘Green New Deal’ disaster.”

Republican lawmakers have also promoted legislation that would prevent state and local governments from enacting mandates that favor electric vehicles or restrict the use of propane or methane stoves, claiming they want to protect consumer choices. Governor Tony Evers vetoed those bills because he said they would limit the state’s ability to combat climate change.

If the latest lawsuit is successful, it will spark a torrent of backlash from Republicans in Wisconsin. In the event they follow the example set by so-called leaders at the national level, they may simply choose to ignore any court decision. This case has national implications and we will keep our readers informed as it moves forward.