Climate Judiciary Project (CJP) is a left-of-center judicial advocacy and judicial education program of the Environmental Law Institute (ELI). ¹ CJP collaborates with national judicial education institutions in an effort to increase federal, state, and local judges’ ²  familiarity with left-of-center interpretations of climate science methods, concepts, and regulations. ³

In 2020, the left-of-center William and Flora Hewlett Foundation gave $500,000 to ELI for the Climate Judiciary Project. ⁴

As of May 2023, more than 1,000 judges have participated in CJP’s programming, which includes 13 curriculum modules and 21 contributors. ⁵

History and Leadership

Climate Judiciary Project (CJP) is an individual program of the left-of-center Environmental Law Institute (ELI) ⁶ that was founded in 2018 by Paul Hanle. ⁷ Prior to founding CJP, Hanle held various academic positions and advised the Obama administration on climate-related topics. ⁸

As of July 2023, Climate Judiciary Project’s director role was vacant. ⁹ Jared Mummert is the manager of the Climate Judiciary Project. ^{10 11}

Activities and Funding

Climate Judiciary Project (CJP) is an individual program of the left-of-center Environmental Law Institute (ELI) ¹² that collaborates with national judicial educational institutions to increase judges’ familiarity with left-of-center interpretations of climate science methods and concepts. CJP is a part of ELI’s broader initiatives that have provided training and resources to more than 3,000 judges in 28 countries on climate-related issues since 1990. ¹³

As of May 2023, CJP consists of 13 curriculum modules, 21 contributors, and more than 1,000 participating judges. It has hosted more than 35 events. ¹⁴

CJP uses “ambassadors” ¹⁵ to educate judges on what it says is the science underpinning climate change through webinars, in-person seminars, and an online curriculum. In 2022, CJP participated in the United Nations’ COP26  climate summit to share its belief that judges who are informed on the group’s interpretation of climate science are key to addressing a climate crisis. ¹⁶

CJP’s curriculum has collaborated with members of the National Academies to influence federal, state, and local judges’ understanding of climate-related litigation. ¹⁷ The curriculum is designed as a resource for judges and includes materials, white papers, videos, slides, and other materials that have left-of-center perspectives on climate-related judicial rulings and litigation. ¹⁸ CJP’s curriculum covers topics including the causes of climate change, impacts of climate change, the far-left concept of climate justice, risks and costs of climate change, attribution, solving climate change, an overview of climate litigation, government action and climate science, and others. ¹⁹

Hawaii State Supreme Court Chief Justice Mark Rectenwald has participated in CJP programming and has presided over several lawsuits between the City of Honolulu and energy companies. ²⁰

Funding

Climate Judiciary Project is a project of the left-of-center Environmental Law Institute (ELI). ²¹ In 2021, ELI spent $3,220,225 on research and policy priorities. An undisclosed amount of this funding went towards its judicial education programs. ²²

In 2020, the left-of-center William and Flora Hewlett Foundation gave $500,000 to ELI for the Climate Judiciary Project. ²³

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