International Environmental Law (IEL) has developed as a separate field of law only in the last three decades. It is dynamic, fascinating, and critically important. This course begins with overview of the current state of the global environment and the human activities which effect the biosphere, followed by a brief history of IEL. Because students are not expected to have any prior background in International Law, the course also introduces the process of making international law and the institutions involved in implementing IEL, such as the United Nations Environment Programme, treaty secretariats, and non-governmental organizations. We examine two of the most significant current global environmental issues and the legal mechanisms that address them: climate change (including a careful examination of the Kyoto Protocol) and access to freshwater (including the possible development of a right to water). Students also gain familiarity with the central concepts in this field, such as sustainable development, the precautionary principle, and the common heritage of humankind. We also examine environmental provisions of regional trade agreements and engage in site visits that bring the problems and the solutions live and direct to the students.
More course offerings and curriculum highlights will follow here.
The International Legal Studies Program offers a joint speaker series with the Institute for International, Comparative and Area Studies at the University of California, San Diego. The speaker series addresses prominent issues in international and comparative law.
The Institute for International, Comparative, and Area Studies (IICAS) promotes research on international, comparative, and cross-regional topics at the University of California, San Diego. IICAS coordinates and supports faculty research in departments, area studies programs, and the Graduate School of International Relations and Pacific Studies (IR/PS). It is closely associated with undergraduate and graduate education in international studies, including Eleanor Roosevelt College, the undergraduate international studies major, and IR/PS.
You can see the previous brochures about the series here
The most recent program is available here
The International Legal Studies Program at California Western School of Law and the Institute for International, Comparative, and Area Studies at the University of California, San Diego are pleased to present their ninth annual Joint Speaker Series: From Climate Change to Global Sustainability: The Great Transition.
Evidence mounts that humanity is changing the world's climate, very possibly in dangerous and irreversible ways. Despite such evidence, scientific, economic, and ethical aspects of climate change remain contested. Governments and the international community have not been able to develop an appropriate response. This series brings together experts from climate science, law, economics, and politics to assess the current impasse and chart the path to a sustainable future.
For more information about this speaker series contact Debra Compton at 619-525-1466
A new speakers series for 2012-2103 is being developed now.
