Building the next generation of public interest environmental lawyers in BC
- Details
- Published on Monday, 24 August 2015 19:00
- Written by editor
Summer law student volunteer reflections |
Climate change affecting BC shellfish now |
Allocating responsibility for climate change |
Info accessibility in the NEB |
Managing BC's underground treasure vaults |
What is climate leadership, anyway?
Dear Paov,West Coast is enriched each summer with the arrival of summer law student... volunteers who spend three months in our office engaging in all aspects of our work. We help build a strong community of public interest environmental lawyers in Canada by providing our students with valuable experience on the frontlines of public interest environmental law. In turn, these students contribute significantly to our work for communities and the environment.
In this issue we showcase some of the work that the 2015 law student volunteers produced this summer. You can also read their personal reflections on their time at West Coast.
We also highlight two important government consultations. At this critical time for water and climate issues in BC, it's important for all of us to participate in decision-making processes. Please take a moment to add your voice to these ongoing consultations: one on groundwater management (closes Sept.8) and one on the upcoming Climate Leadership Plan (closes Sept.14).
Reflections on Summer 2015: law student volunteers look back Every summer West Coast welcomes a group of law student volunteers into our office for a three-to-four-month placement. The students engage in all our program areas, producing valuable research and analysis that go a long way in supporting our work. They also learn a great deal in the process. This year we welcomed six new faces and enjoyed the creativity, intelligence and high spirits they brought. We wish them all the best in the next stage of their law school journey.
- Here are some of the students' personal reflections from a very full and enriching summer at West Coast.
The "real and now" of climate change for BC's shellfish The shellfish industry provides a huge economic benefit to British Columbia, Canada's largest producer of farmed oysters. But BC's shellfish — wild and farmed — are at risk from ocean acidification resulting from rising ocean temperatures. This summer, law student volunteer Rachel Gutman investigated this issue, and many other ways that British Columbians are feeling the effects of weak environmental protections.
- Read Rachel's post on how climate change has already begun to impact BC's shellfish and threaten livelihoods and ecosystems along BC's coast.
- Stay tuned for more stories like this about people and communities directly affected by the federal environmental law rollbacks. A new blog series will be released this Wednesday as part of EnviroLawsMatter.ca, a project of West Coast Environmental Law.
Scientists on fossil fuel companies' responsibility for climate change Three climate experts recently published an article in the scientific journal Climatic Change arguing that major carbon-producing companies — namely, fossil fuel companies — should bear greater responsibility for the impacts of climate change. Summer law student Justine Desmond reviews the article, focusing on the potential for a legal framework for allocating responsibility for climate impacts.
- Read Justine's review of The climate responsibilities of industrial carbon producers.
- Read more about our work on allocating responsibility for climate change.
Increasing information accessibility in the controversial Kinder Morgan hearing One of our summer law students, Adam Cembrowski, had an innovative idea for solving the ongoing problem of information accessibility and transparency on the National Energy Board website. He created a website featuring summaries of the evidence submitted by interveners in the Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion proposal. His goal was to increase information accessibility during the Kinder Morgan review process; it was a resounding success as hundreds of people shared the site and commented on its usefulness as a tool.
- Read Adam's reflection on why he chose to build the site and how he hoped it would be used.
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Check out the site itself atr0
Legal e-Brief is a publication of the West Coast Environmental Law Association. wcel.org
West Coast Environmental Law
Publication of Legal e-Brief is made possible by the generous financial support of the Law Foundation of BC
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