Judgement judgment issued by Council of State (in Italian).

On April 19, 2021, as part of a campaign on the influence of fossil fuel companies on Italian universities, Greenpeace Italy requested access to the framework agreements, contracts, conventions and collaboration agreements concluded in 2019-2021 between the Polytechnic University of Turin and ENI S.p.A. and its group companies (Versalis, Eni Rewind, Eni Corporate University and Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei), together with information on the degree and postgraduate courses and other funding provided by those companies. On May 21, 2021, the University denied access, arguing that documents concerning academic agreements and financial relationships did not contain environmental information. Greenpeace challenged the denial before the Regional Administrative Court of Piedmont. 

On April 19, 2022 (judgment No. 379/2022), the Court annulled the denial and ordered disclosure within 20 days, holding that environmental information covers not only data directly related to the environment but also choices, actions and activities that directly or indirectly involve the environment and its protection. ENI and the University appealed, and the Council of State suspended the judgment pending appeal (orders No. 2695/2022 and No. 2701/2022). 

On July 6, 2023 (judgment No. 6611/2023, Seventh Section), the Council of State dismissed both appeals. It held that the right of access to environmental information must be interpreted as broadly as possible and extends to activities that affect the environment only indirectly. In finding that agreements between a university and "a company that is notoriously a leader in the energy sector" concern environmental information, the Court relied on ENI's own public statements that it is committed to the energy transition and to achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, described the energy transition as "one of the essential areas of current environmental problems", and noted that energy is expressly listed among the environmental factors in Legislative Decree No. 195/2005. It further held that generic claims of commercial confidentiality relating to corporate strategies cannot override the right of access, and that disclosure of corporate funding of research grants, scholarships and degree courses could only have a positive effect on the quality of university education.

Greenpeace Italy v. Polytechnic University of Turin and ENI S.p.A.

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Greenpeace Italy v. Polytechnic University of Turin and ENI S.p.A. - decision

Filed

On April 19, 2021, as part of a campaign on the influence of fossil fuel companies on Italian universities, Greenpeace Italy requested access to the framework agreements, contracts, conventions and collaboration agreements concluded in 2019-2021 between the Polytechnic University of Turin and ENI S.p.A. and its group companies (Versalis, Eni Rewind, Eni Corporate University and Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei), together with information on the degree and postgraduate courses and other funding provided by those companies. On May 21, 2021, the University denied access, arguing that documents concerning academic agreements and financial relationships did not contain environmental information. Greenpeace challenged the denial before the Regional Administrative Court of Piedmont. 

On April 19, 2022 (judgment No. 379/2022), the Court annulled the denial and ordered disclosure within 20 days, holding that environmental information covers not only data directly related to the environment but also choices, actions and activities that directly or indirectly involve the environment and its protection. ENI and the University appealed, and the Council of State suspended the judgment pending appeal (orders No. 2695/2022 and No. 2701/2022). 

On July 6, 2023 (judgment No. 6611/2023, Seventh Section), the Council of State dismissed both appeals. It held that the right of access to environmental information must be interpreted as broadly as possible and extends to activities that affect the environment only indirectly. In finding that agreements between a university and "a company that is notoriously a leader in the energy sector" concern environmental information, the Court relied on ENI's own public statements that it is committed to the energy transition and to achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, described the energy transition as "one of the essential areas of current environmental problems", and noted that energy is expressly listed among the environmental factors in Legislative Decree No. 195/2005. It further held that generic claims of commercial confidentiality relating to corporate strategies cannot override the right of access, and that disclosure of corporate funding of research grants, scholarships and degree courses could only have a positive effect on the quality of university education. 

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An aim to achieve a quantifiable outcome within a given time-frame, set by an institution such as a national government.

Policy instruments are techniques or tools used by governing authorities to promote certain policies in order to achieve predetermined goals. Put simply, instruments are how a government tries to achieve its goals, with this taxonomy being focused on national policy instruments.

Risk is the potential for adverse consequences resulting from the dynamic interplay between (climate-related) hazards, exposure, and vulnerability of affected human or ecological systems.

Groups  of people who are adversely affected by climate change or the response to it

A set of principles, processes, and practices that build economic and political power to shift from an extractive economy to a regenerative economy.

Justice is the ethical and political framework that addresses fairness, including issues of responsibility, rights, and structural inequity.

Renewable energy means all forms of energy produced from renewable sources in a sustainable manner.

Fossil fuel is a generic term for non-renewable energy sources such as coal, fossil gas, and oil (including crude oil, and petroleum products), that can be used for electricity and heat generation. Fossil fuels are hydrocarbons formed from pressurised and heated organic material buried over millions of years.

Molecules in the atmosphere that play a key role in the greenhouse effect by trapping heat radiating from Earth’s surface.

Area of the economy in which actors engage in identical or related activities.

In human systems, the process of adjustment to actual or expected climate change and its effects, in order to moderate harm, increase resilience or exploit beneficial opportunities. In natural systems, the process of adjustment to actual climate change and its effects; human intervention may facilitate adjustment to expected climate change and its effects.

The management and allocation of funds, assets and investments to meet various objectives

A target to reduce the prevalence of a greenhouse gas over a specific time frame

A commitment to balance GHG emissions with removal by a certain point in time, effectively reducing the net emissions to zero

This sector creates and distributes information and entertainment through television, radio, print, and digital platforms.

This sector involves activities that impart knowledge and skills to individuals, including formal schooling, vocational training and educational support.

Greenpeace Italy v. Polytechnic University of Turin and ENI S.p.A. - decision

Target

Economic sector