The IUCN Academy of Environmental Law
The IUCN Academy of Environmental Law is a world-wide network of close to 120 universities and research institutions teaching and pursuing research in environmental law. Launched in 2003 with the support of the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) the Academy was established to support the development of environmental law and policy on a global scale. The Academy is under the direction of a ten member Governing Board, representing all regions of the world.
The Academy is focused on:
- The development and delivery of programs aimed at building university-level teaching capacity in environmental law
- The generation of global research programs with major partners to feed into international environmental law and policy agendas
- The convening of major international conferences and exchanges
The Secretariat of the IUCN Academy was established in 2006 and is supported by the University of Ottawa and the Faculty of Law. In addition to working closely with the environmental law faculty, the IUCN Academy is well positioned to foster linkages amongst law schools in Canada and globally.
In the six years since the IUCN Academy was launched, the collaborative efforts of law schools, leading environmental law scholars and experts around the world have resulted in seven international colloquia, each in a different country, that have addressed some of the most urgent issues related to environmental law. The most recent colloquia took place in November 2009 Colloquium in Wuhan, China, with a theme of Environmental Governance. Planning is underway for the Eighth Colloquium which will take place in Ghent, Belgium in September 2010. The theme of the event will be on Biodiversity and Claimate Change. An important outcome of each of these global conferences has been the publication and wide dissemination of the papers delivered at these landmark events.
The Academy also promotes various activities to enhance the capacities in environmental legal education in universities and related institutions, focusing on developing countries and economies in transition. These activities include the preparation of environmental law curricula and the conduct of “training the trainers” programs.
The website of the Academy can be accessed at www.iucnael.org. There are a rangeof resources that can be accessed including our "Environmental Law Library of the Earth" and a directory of scholars in environmental law from around the globe.
The Secretariat is supported by both the Common Law and Civil Law sections of the Faculty of Law. The Director is Professor Yves le Bouthillier ylebouth@uottawa.ca and the Manager is Carolyn Farquhar Carolyn.Farquhar@uottawa.ca. Our Membership Manager is Winnie Carruth iucnael@uottawa.ca. (see photo) The Secretariat is located on the 5th floor of Fauteux.
Left to right: Carolyn Farquhar, Yves Le Bouthillier, Winnie Carruth