Introduction

This chapter introduces a landmark climate justice lawsuit initiated by Saúl Luciano Lliuya against the German energy giant RWE. It details how a small-scale farmer from the Peruvian Andes, deeply affected by glacial retreat and flood risk, mobilized legal action to hold a major polluter accountable. The case revolved around a normative argument about neighborly relations, which posits that shared global emissions create mutual responsibilities between distant communities and corporations. The author uses neighborliness as a conceptual starting point to examine how climate change reframes moral relations across the planet. In his dual role as an engaged anthropologist and activist, the author provides a unique insider perspective on the legal, scientific, and ethical dimensions that shape the case.