Welcome to the Center for Climate Crime Analysis

The judicial branch of government and law enforcement are uniquely placed to contribute to addressing the climate crisis. In most legal systems, judicial proceedings - unlike political and legislative processes - are independent and impartial. The decision-making of judges and prosecutors is free from the pressures of special interests' lobbies or short term political gain, and focusses on justice and the rule of law. At the same time, judgments are legally binding and must be enforced. 

The CCCA is a non-profit organization of prosecutors and law enforcement professionals designed to trigger  and support prosecutions of criminal activities that result in, or are associated with, the emission of significant amounts of greenhouse gases (climate crimes).​ In so doing, the CCCA will facilitate the scaling-up of the prosecution of climate crimes at the national and international level, so that criminal justice can help achieve the emission mitigation objectives of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.

Blending a network approach with specialist expertise, the CCCA will help solve the problem of under-prosecution of climate crimes. Leading law enforcement authorities and NGOs agree that this problem exists, but have not yet addressed the root cause, namely the 'information gap' between those with access to information and with expertise relevant to criminal activity, and those with the means to put a stop to it. The CCCA seeks to bridge this gap.

The CCCA operates through an innovative approach, namely the Law Enforcement Support Model, that allows it to provide high quality information about specific climate crimes to the appropriate law enforcement and prosecution authorities in a timely manner. It  builds upon information collected and made available by other organizations and persons, employing cutting-edge open source investigation techniques, and directing and coordinating investigations of other organizations, including NGOs, and experts.  The CCCA then conducts legal and forensic analysis of information in light of potential climate crimes before it shares information, leads and analysis - through INTERPOL or the International Criminal Court - with the competent law enforcement authorities.

Through its approach, the CCCA ensures that the information collected by other organizations and experts is relevant, as complete as possible, and admissible in criminal proceedings. It also helps preserve information. Law enforcement authorities thus benefit from information and analysis that would otherwise be unavailable to them or that would only be available at a substantial financial cost. This can lead to significant efficiency gains by law enforcement authorities, and therefore may result in scaling up investigations and prosecutions of climate crimes.

The CCCA further has access to a network of advocates and legal professionals who enforce and litigate climate related cases under various legal regimes in various jurisdictions. Because the CCCA collects and analyses evidence for criminal proceedings that apply the highest standard of proof - beyond reasonable doubt - that same evidence can also inform and support litigation under other legal regimes. This includes administrative enforcement, UN/EU/US sanction mechanisms, and civil litigation. By sharing its information and analysis with its partners, the CCCA can trigger, coordinate and support a multifaceted enforcement and climate litigation campaign.

The CCCA has been operative since 2017. To protect on-going investigations and proceedings, as well as its sources, the CCCA does not reveal any details of concrete cases.

Endorsements and partners: