“Four residents of Indonesia's Pari Island push to take Holcim cement to court over climate change impacts”, 3 September 2025

Locals from a tiny Indonesian island are one step closer to taking a global cement giant to court in what would be a landmark climate change case.

Four residents of Pari Island have filed a lawsuit in Switzerland demanding compensation from the world's largest cement firm Holcim for the damage wrought to their home by climate change.

The plaintiffs travelled to Switzerland to take part in Wednesday's hearing at the court in Zug, where Holcim is headquartered, to determine whether it will consider the complaint...

Environmentalists have said 11 per cent of the 42-hectare island has already disappeared in recent years, and it could be completely under water by 2050 due to rising sea levels.

The islanders say saltwater floods have surged in scale and frequency, battering homes and damaging livelihoods.

The four plaintiffs are seeking 3,600 Swiss francs ($6,847) each from Holcim for damages and for protection measures such as planting mangroves and constructing breakwater barriers.

In addition, the plaintiffs are demanding a 43 per cent reduction in Holcim's greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and a 69 per cent reduction by 2040…

Environmentalists say Holcim ranks among the world's 100 biggest corporate CO2 emitters, and so bears significant responsibility for climate-related loss and damage…

Before the hearing, Holcim maintained that "the question of who is allowed to emit how much CO2" should be "a matter for the legislature and not a question for a civil court". 

But it said Wednesday that "we await the court's decision", insisting that it was "fully committed to reaching net zero by 2050 with sustainability at the core of our strategy"…

It was not clear when the court would decide if it would hear the case.