Holding Shell accountable for climate damages
Typhoon Odette: an unnatural disaster
Super Typhoon Odette was the 15th storm to hit the Philippines in 2021, and by far the strongest.
What made Typhoon Odette especially dangerous was how quickly a ‘normal’ typhoon became catastrophic. Typhoon Odette underwent explosive intensification, going from a Category-1 to a Category-5 Super Typhoon in the 24 hours before landfall. This made it harder for communities to prepare and evacuate to safety.
Extreme weather events like Super Typhoon Odette aren’t random - they are unnatural disasters caused by climate change. New research shows that the likelihood of storms like Typhoon Odette has roughly doubled in the Philippines due to human-induced climate change. And in its landmark 2022 report, the Philippine Commission on Human Rights found that companies like Shell are partly to blame.
Filipino communities like the claimants are feeling some of the worst effects of the climate crisis, despite having contributed almost nothing to it. They are forced to rebuild over and over, getting through one disaster only to be hit by another.
But they’re fighting back. It’s time for change – stand with them.
Meet the claimants
Over 100 ordinary Filipinos are demanding justice for the homes they lost, the injuries they endured, and for loved ones lost in Typhoon Odette.
Hear their stories
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In the heart of Batasan Island, Bohol, Annie's wooden stilt house epitomises the islanders' unwavering connection to their home. It has stood for 53 years.
Annie, sleepless in the island's early hours, confronts rising waters — a daily struggle to protect their homes. She treasures her island home and refuses to relocate. It has nurtured generations—a sanctuary against the encroaching uncertainties of a changing world.
Annie passionately pleads for climate polluters to cease the environmental destruction of her sanctuary. She points to the suffering inflicted on communities like hers that are caught in the crossfires of climate change. Her unwavering commitment mirrors the courage of islanders, who stand steadfast even against the unrelenting tides of injustice.
In the onslaught of Typhoon Odette’s storm surge, Annie's father raced to their house, urgently telling them to evacuate. They loved their home, but their survival should be the priority. Annie stood in awe, watching the swift rise of water levels on her island, leaving her with no choice but to focus on rescuing her family.
Annie joined the legal action because she wants to protect her community from the effects of the climate crisis.
Before Typhoon Odette, Trixy’s life was good. She and her family had built their own house. They could even buy a boat and start a business from their savings. Fishing became their primary source of income and Trixy’s husband quit his job to prioritise their own business.
Then the typhoon hit. Trixy had to swim 50 metres through rising waters from her collapsing house to a safer one with her mother, father, husband, brother, and her two children (5 and 10). Debris raced around them, bruising her leg and cutting her mothers’ - she needed five stitches. Trixy’s home was destroyed, and her clothes were all gone. For five days, she wore the same clothes she had worn when Odette hit her.
Trixy and her family were left with nothing and were forced to start over. Despite their difficulties, Trixy and her husband worked hard to rebuild their lives. They took a loan from a microfinance group to get back on their feet and even sold precious jewellery to sustain their lives. After a while, they managed to rebuild their house but could no longer afford a boat to continue their business.
Thanks to their resilience, life goes on - but Trixy remembers how scared she was for her life and her children’s lives during the storm and remains afraid of something similar coming again.
Trixy joined the legal action when she was invited to a meeting by one of her neighbours. She was curious about what it entailed and, during the meeting, quickly understood that it was about fighting for justice. She decided to join because she felt there was nothing to lose – even as a small community and ordinary people, these oil and gas companies might just notice them if they united and acted together. She believes that even if the case doesn’t succeed, she is doing her bestto make a difference.
Hazel has called Inanuran her home with her husband and child since 2016. Before the typhoon, they sold an abundance of fish. Now, populations have dwindled so much that they measure their catches in grams, where once they measured them in kilos.
Hazel evacuated to the mainland during the Typhoon. When she returned home, her house had been washed away into the sea. Their belongings were gone, and their food supplies were destroyed by seawater. Hazel and her husband lived in a tent for six months until disaster relief efforts helped them build a house on another part of the island.
In its aftermath, amid the wreckage, trauma lingers. Hazel feels terror whenever she hears wind and rain and starts escorting her child to school daily.
In her heart, a question echoes, grappling with the island's risks: a lifetime on its shores or a safer relocation to the mainland? Relocation could offer safety, but fishing roots resist farming on unfamiliar land. Her connection to her home weighs heavily on her. The future, and especially her child’s, remains Hazel's worry.
In Hazel's recollection of Typhoon Odette, the mangroves, or "bakhaw," stand out alongside memories of her family and home. These mangroves act as a vital shield against storm surges and typhoons, providing sanctuary for small crabs and fish. A wave of sorrow washed over her when she returned from the evacuation centre. She beheld the devastating aftermath—broken and uprooted mangroves scattered across the landscape, their once-protective presence now reduced to splinters. Almost none remained standing - a heartrending reminder of the typhoon's impact on the natural safeguards of her island.
Hazel understood that people should be held accountable for the climate crisis and what is happening to her and her family’s lives. But at first, she was sceptical about the legal action. How could they win against a giant corporation? Doesn’t the Filipino judicial system take 20-30 years to achieve justice? However, she was re-energised upon learning that the case will take place against Shell in the UK courts.
Arnold is a fisherman from Bilangbilangan, Bohol. He represents the vast challenges facing coastal communities amidst the climate crisis. Worried about tidal flooding and typhoons, Arnold grapples with the dilemma of staying in his ancestral home versus the risks and benefits of relocation.
Arnold's attachment to Bilangbilangan is rooted in a profound connection to the island's marine resources and the sustenance they have provided his community for generations. Despite the dangers, Arnold, like many, remains resilient. He is tethered to a way of life that, though increasingly dangerous, connects him to his community's history and identity in the face of an uncertain, climate-altered future.
When Typhoon Odette hit, Arnold didn’t think it would be that big of a deal. But then waves crashed over him, nearly pulling him out to sea. Luckily, he managed to cling on to part of a broken building. Arnold’s house, which he had inherited, was completely destroyed in the typhoon. He and his fifteen-year-old son sheltered in debris. It took them six months to build a proper house. Arnold lost his fishing equipment, boat battery, and fishing rods. He was terrified and remains terrified of another storm.
Arnold joined the case because he hoped it would allow his children to live safer lives and that they could benefit from his dedication to the cause.
About the legal case
The aim of the legal case is to secure justice for communities in the Philippines.
This justice includes compensation for personal injury and death, damage to their homes and property, and breach of their constitutional rights to a healthy environment.
Backed by UK law firm Hausfeld, this case will be filed in the UK, where Shell is based, but will follow Philippine law since the harm occurred there. This case puts the power in the hands of the communities demanding justice for the harm caused by Shell’s dangerous activity.
The claimants are seeking financial compensation for the damage they suffered, in line with the ‘polluter pays’ principle. The claim alleges that Shell’s actions contributed to anthropogenic climate change, making Typhoon Odette significantly more likely and more severe.
Why is Shell being sued?
Shell is among the world’s major fossil fuel polluters and has an alleged history of deliberate deception and misinformation about the causes and impacts of climate change.
Evidence of this deception, along with new scientific research, forms the basis of the Odette Case, which holds Shell liable for its contribution to the damage caused by Typhoon Odette.
In the four years following Typhoon Odette, Shell made $100 billion in global profits. While Filipinos are forced to rebuild their lives over and over again in the wake of unnatural disasters, Shell is continuing to fuel and profit from the climate crisis. Despite its record profits, Shell has disputed the case, claiming it is not legally responsible for the damages caused by Typhoon Odette. It is time for justice.
How Shell is fuelling unnatural disasters
New research shows that the likelihood of a disaster like Typhoon Odette in the Philippines has roughly doubled due to current warming.
Extreme weather events like Super Typhoon Odette aren’t random; climate change makes them stronger and more likely. Leading international scientists from the Centre for Environmental Policy, the Grantham Institute and the University of Sheffield have found that human-induced climate change has likely more than doubled the risk of combined high winds and heavy rainfall like those which happened during Super Typhoon Odette.
This new research supports the findings from the Philippine Commission on Human Rights, which says that companies like Shell are partly to blame for the rising number and severity of unnatural disasters like Super Typhoon Odette.
