Indian-origin climate activist takes up cudgels against Australian govt

Lucknow-born Anjali Sharma, who has been living in Australia since the age of 10 months, has earned a name for herself in climate activism.

  The 17-year-old high school student of Melbourne’s Huntingtower School has made headlines not just for her climate activism, but also for taking Australia’s environment minister to court in a class action suit over a mining project in New South Wales.

She became aware of the climate change issues after the havoc-wreaking floods in South Asia in 2017.

Anjali saw her family members in India deal with the effects of climate change and severe floods.

She thought Australia as a country was not taking adequate measures to deal with climate change.

In the court case, Sharma and Others Vs Minister for the Environment, Anjali’s team of activists was represented by Equity Generation Lawyers and supported by an 86-year-old nun, Sister Brigid Arthur, her litigation guardian.

The case was seeking an injunction from the federal court to block the expansion of the mine. 

Despite the outcome, Anjali’s team of young climate activists has not ruled out further court action and said they would continue fighting for stronger climate policies.