Each summer, ELI convenes a complimentary seminar series that offers an introduction to the legal and policy foundations of environmental protection in the United States.
ELI's Summer School is a series of seminars taught by experts in their fields, introducing the audience to the major environmental statutes, including the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), Clean Air Act (CAA), Clean Water Act (CWA), Endangered Species Act (ESA), Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), and Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA); land use law; and environmental justice. Faculty will also incorporate major regulatory and judicial updates to the laws.
Who will benefit: All are welcome. Students and emerging professionals will have unique opportunities to learn, hear updates, ask questions, and network. The series is intended for:
- undergraduates,
- law students and graduate students, and
- working professionals new to or looking for a refresher course in environmental law (such as interns, summer clerks, and associates, or second-career professionals).
Environmental Justice
ELI’s annual Summer School Series concludes with a special session to introduce participants to the opportunities and obstacles within the realm of environmental justice.
Although no federal environmental justice laws have been enacted, federal agencies, including the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), have made staunch efforts to work with other federal agencies to integrate environmental justice into policies and practices. This session explores the foundations, current opportunities for federal environmental and climate justice legislation, and obstacles facing environmental justice. Faculty will explore the following:
- inclusion of local and indigenous communities in the decision-making process,
- how federal, state, tribal, and local governments are addressing environmental justice,
- methods for including multiple stakeholders in environmental justice conversations and processes.
Panelists:
Kristine Perry, Staff Attorney, Environmental Law Institute, Moderator
Kiana Courtney, Staff Attorney, Environmental Law & Policy Center
Beth Rose Middleton, Professor and Department Chair, Department of Native American Studies, University of California Davis
Rujeko A. Muza, Associate, Beveridge & Diamond PC
Daria Neal, former Senior Counsel, Environmental Justice Project, Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights under the Law
Gerald Torres, Professor of Environmental Justice, Yale School of the Environment and Professor of Law, Yale Law School
Materials:
Kiana Courtney presentation
Beth Rose Middleton presentation
Rujeko A. Muza presentation
Gerald Torres presentation
Recordings of Summer School sessions are usually posted w/in 48 hours.
**See the entire Summer School 2021 schedule HERE.**