What can you do when you see a river being poisoned, a forest cleared without notice, or an industrial facility polluting the air you breathe, and nobody listens? For too many environmental defenders across Europe, the path to justice is unclear, fragmented, or simply overwhelming.
We have a solution for this.
This November, the BeLIFE project launches a groundbreaking Environmental Complaints Support Portal, a simple and user-friendly online tool designed to help individuals and groups who believe environmental laws are being broken, but do not know where to turn.
The portal is a digital tool that acts as a “symptoms checker” for environmental harms. Whether you are a citizen concerned about illegal deforestation, a community group fighting against hazardous waste dumping, or a student activist unsure if a government permit violated EU law, this portal will guide you through the possible redress routes.
Instead of replacing existing legal mechanisms, the tool helps you identify them. Based on the answers, the portal points to the most suitable legal or administrative mechanisms, ranging from national courts and ombudsman offices to EU petitions committees, to international bodies like the Aarhus Convention Compliance Committee.
This is not a tool for lawyers, but for people who want to defend the environment but who aren’t sure where to start.
In addition to providing guidance, the portal will serve as a compliance monitoring tool. By collecting anonymous, GDPR-compliant data about the types of environmental breaches people report, the tool will help identify patterns of environmental law violations across Europe. Through the portal, we aim to then inform advocacy, policy changes, and enforcement efforts at the EU level.
The portal will officially go live November 12 during a hybrid launch event and symposium, bringing together environmental defenders, Aarhus Convention legal experts, civil society organisations, and EU officials. The event will seek to strengthen protections for environmental defenders by identifying concrete solutions to the challenges they face and giving recommendations on how to ensure these solutions are implemented.
You are still not convinced the portal will actually help you? You can find it out through this quiz!
QUIZ – What kind of Environmental Defender am I? Jot down A, B, C or D for each question and add them up at the end.
💭 QUESTION 1:
You discover a new incinerator is being built just 300 meters from your neighbourhood, but nobody was consulted. What is your first instinct?
A) I start digging into the EU laws about public participation. This smells like an Aarhus Convention case.
B) I rally the neighbours and start planning a town hall meeting.
C) I call a journalist friend: this needs exposure.
D) I honestly do not know where to start, but I want to do something.
💭 QUESTION 2:
You file a complaint with your local environmental NGO about illegal waste dumping. Months pass… and nothing happens. What next?
A) I start drafting a petition to the European Parliament.
B) I want to find an EU or UN body that might take this more seriously.
C) I wonder if there is a supranational court I can turn to.
D) I need a simple tool to show me who is in charge and where to go.
💭 QUESTION 3:
You are part of a youth climate group. You suspect the government’s air quality monitoring system is faulty. Who do you turn to?
A) An Ombudsman might help.
B) Is this something I can take to the European Commission for internal review?
C) We do not have lawyers: can the portal help us figure out if we even have a case?
D) I think we need legal backup and a public campaign.
💭 QUESTION 4:
You are facing a lawsuit after exposing pollution by a multinational company. You are being silenced. What next?
A) Is this a SLAPP? I want to know what protections I have.
B) Are there watchdog bodies or legal support networks I can reach out to?
C) The EU just passed laws on this: can the portal point me there?
D) I need moral and legal backup – ideally both.
💭 QUESTION 5:
You are curious about how to use law strategically, but you are not a lawyer. Can you still use the portal?
A) Yes, it is designed exactly for people like me.
B) Yes, especially if I want to learn what redress tools exist without hiring a lawyer.
C) Yes, the decision tree format makes it low-pressure and easy to understand.
D) All of the above.
YOUR DEFENDER PROFILE:
Mostly A’s – The Legal Strategist ⚖️
You already speak fluent Article This and Directive That. The portal is your perfect co-pilot when mapping out legal battles and choosing your next move. It connects you to over 10 legal pathways, helps you match symptoms with routes (national, EU, UN), and preps you for admissibility hurdles. Let the portal sharpen your strategy.
Mostly B’s – The Community Mobiliser 📣
You believe in strength in numbers. The portal is ideal for helping your community understand their rights and organize collective action. Whether it is environmental petitions or ombudsman routes, use the portal to turn local outrage into legal momentum.
Mostly C’s – The Journalist 🗞️
You are the watchdog. You reveal truth and hold power to account. The portal can support you in learning your rights when facing gag lawsuits (SLAPPs), and direct whistleblowers or sources to the right legal avenues safely and anonymously.
Mostly D’s – The Explorer 🧭
You are new to legal action, but determined to act. That is exactly who the portal is built for. It is easy to use, explains things without legal jargon, and gives you just enough direction to find the next step. You may not have a lawyer, but you have got the portal.
