The courts in the following three examples from Colombia, Argentina, and Pakistan each considered cases involving an entire watershed and created unique solutions to supervise the long-term cleanup and restoration of the river systems. The Colombia Consejo de Estado, the country’s highest administrative appeals court, issued a judgment in 2014 against companies, government agencies, and municipalities that caused or failed to prevent the degradation of the Bogotá River watershed.

Rights-based approaches are already focusing governments’ attention on climate change and urging stronger action. Cases in Pakistan and the Netherlands demonstrate the impact these approaches can have. Ashar Lghari, a Pakistani farmer, sued his national government for its failure to implement the 2012 National Climate Policy and Framework.