Since the historic Held v. State of Montana trial began on June 12, 2023, in the Lewis and Clark County District Court in Helena, MT, Judge Kathy Seeley presiding, we recorded and archived the audio to preserve the record to inform and allow listeners to hear for themselves what transpired.

In this edition we share the unedited recording of the testimony of Youth Plaintiff, Claire Vlases, from Bozeman, MT. She is 20 but was 17 when the case was filed. She is famous for having accomplished as a 7th grader the funding and installation of solar panels at her school, Sacajawea Middle School, as well as 2 other schools in Bozeman. She was the youngest person appointed by the mayor to the Bozeman Climate Team on the Buildings Committee planning to 2050.

She talked about her experience testifying at the Montana Legislature in favor of placing solar panels at other schools in Montana, to no avail.

She spoke of how climate change has effected her ability to get dependable work as a ski instructor. She was captain of Bozeman High School’s Cross Country team, and that the smoke interfered with her training and the races that were cancelled, as well as recreational hiking in Glacier National Park. She remarked on Dr. Shane Doyle’s testifying that he doesn’t remember smoke in the summer when he was growing up. Claire said doesn’t remember a summer when it hasn’t been smokey.

For the first time in the United States, youth plaintiffs were able to present their case in a court of law, that their inalienable constitutional rights under Article II Section 3 of the Montana State Constitution “to a clean and healthful environment and the rights of pursuing life’s basic necessities, enjoying and defending their lives and liberties, acquiring, possessing and protecting property, and seeking their safety, health and happiness in all lawful ways.” ….. were being denied and violated by the policies and actions of their government. Further, that The State was in violation of their responsibilities as required under Article IX, Environment and Natural Resources, Section 1. Protection and Improvement that “The state and each person shall maintain and improve a clean and healthful environment in Montana for present and future generations. Section 2. The legislature shall provide for the administration and enforcement of this duty. and Section 3. The legislature shall provide adequate remedies for the protection of the environmental life support system from degradation and provide adequate remedies to prevent unreasonable depletion and degradation of natural resources.”