Brodies Environmental Law Lecture Series
Edinburgh Law School in association with Brodies LLP hosts the annual Brodies Environmental Law Lecture Series, which commenced in 1993.
Edinburgh Law School is grateful to Brodies LLP for their continuing support for the series, which offers an invaluable forum for the discussion of key developments in environmental law. Over the years, the Brodies Environmental Law Lecture Series has featured an array of distinguished speakers, covering a range of environmental issues.
Join the mailing list to keep up to date on the Brodies Environmental Law Lecture Series
Brodies LLP in partnership with Edinburgh Law School presents the Charles Smith Memorial Lecture:
Effective Environmental Standards, Law and Governance
Speaker: James Martin, Chair, Environmental Standards Scotland
About the Speaker:
James (Jim) Martin has had a wide ranging career in the public and private sectors, serving as the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman for eight years and, before this, as the first Police Complaints Commissioner for Scotland. He is currently Chair of the Scottish Legal Complaints’ Commission.
In his earlier career, among other roles, James was General Secretary for the Educational Institute of Scotland; Scottish non-executive Chairman of Logica and ran a management consultancy. Towards the end of 2019, he was asked to bring his strategic investigative, organisational, governance and start up skills to the design and planning for an interim advisory panel. James now sits as chair of Environmental Standards Scotland (ESS), a new independent body set up to ensure the effectiveness of environmental law, and prevent enforcement gaps arising from the UK leaving the European Union.
James brings strong experience of investigating complex and controversial matters of public concern in Scotland; holding public organisations to account, and fostering improvement across public service delivery to improve outcomes.
About the Event:
The event will begin with a lecture and Q&A delivered by James Martin from 5:30pm-6:30pm, followed by a reception in the MacLaren Stuart Room.
The Charles Smith Memorial Lecture - The British Way of Environmental Protection (23 January 2020)
Speaker: Prof Ben Pontin, Professor of Law, University of Cardiff
Climate Litigation: Systemic Change Through Strategic Use of the Law (5 March 2020)
Speaker: Alice Garton, Legal Director for the Foundation for International Law for the Environment (FILE)
A decade of marine environmental protection under the Marine (Scotland) Act: progress and prospects (26 March 2020)
Speaker: Calum Duncan, Head of Conservation Scotland, Marine Conservation Society
Landscape: A Fresh Perspective on the Challenges of Environmental Law (21 March 2019)
Speaker: Dr Victoria Jenkins, Associate Professor at the Hillary Rodham Clinton School of Law, Swansea University
The Charles Smith Memorial Lecture - Environmental Principles and UK Environmental Law: Stable Foundations or Minefields? (21 February 2019)
Speaker: Prof Eloise Scotford, Professor of Environmental Law in the Faculty of Laws at UCL
A Human Rights Based Approach to Tackling Air Pollution: What Can It Add? (7 February 2019)
Speaker: Dr Daphina Misiedjan, Assistant Professor at the Netherlands Institute of Human Rights and researcher at the Utrecht Center for Oceans, Water and Sustainability Law (UCWOSL).
The Charles Smith Memorial Lecture - Trade and Climate Policy (31 January 2018)
Speaker: Henry Derwent, former President of IETA
World trade law was created before climate concerns became a matter of major political significance. Acknowledging global external costs associated with the production of traded goods and services does not fit easily into the international legal framework for trade. Over the years, adjustments have been made to texts, case-law and institutions, but there are still significant obstacles in the way of states ensuring their trade will not be undercut if they take the lead in recognising climate externalities. Attempts to free trade in environmental goods and services have bogged down, and the idea of using of trade remedies to incentivise compliance with climate objectives is as controversial as ever. Even where subsidies with obvious adverse climate effects appear to be in breach of WTO principles, no action is taken. Today members of the trade and climate “tribes” are beginning to talk to each other, but finding, let alone implementing, agreement on changes is a huge puzzle. Henry Derwent drew on many years’ experience of negotiation and policy-making to see how it might be solved or worked round.
The Transformation of Environmental Regulation Purpose, Strategies and Principles of Transnational Governance (7 March 2018)
Speaker: Dr Veerle Heyvaert, Associate Professor (Reader) of Law, LSE
Deep Seabed Mining in the Area: Emerging Legal, Environmental and Economic Challenges (19 March 2018)
Speaker: Dr Kristina Gjerde, IUCN Senior Policy Adviser
There is increasing interest worldwide in the potential for deep-sea mining to serve as an engine for “Blue Growth”. At the same time, there are increasing concerns about potential environmental impacts. The International Seabed Authority is currently drafting regulations that will govern mining in the international seabed Area for at least the next 30 years. Under UNCLOS, the Area and its (mineral) resources are to be managed on behalf of [hu]mankind as a whole, with economic, scientific and other benefits shared with the international community, in particular developing states. UNCLOS also requires mining to be managed in a way that ensures effective protection and avoids serious harm. This presentation examined the challenges of implementing these requirements from a legal, environmental and economic perspective and the implications of these challenges for the emerging regulatory regime.
The Charles Smith Memorial Lecture - Regulatory Strategy: Scotland and 'One Planet Prosperity' (6 December 2016)
Mr Terry A'Hearn (CEO of SEPA)
Mr Terry A’Hearn has been Chief Executive Officer at ScottishEnvironment Protection Agency since April 2015. He will talk about regulationin the environmental context, in particular SEPA’s new strategy, “One Planet Prosperity” which focuses on the global challenge of reducing the over-use ofthe planet's natural resources. The joint tasks of innovation, collaborationand prosperity, whilst maintaining environmental integrity are at the heart ofthis strategy.”
Sir David King Lecture (30 January 2017)
The Arctic Ocean, Environmental Challenges and the Role of International Law (2 March 2017)
Speaker: Professor Robin Churchill (University of Dundee)
“The lecture will begin by outlining current threats to the marineenvironment of the Arctic, including global warming and airborne pollution, andthen examine possible future threats, including pollution from shipping andoffshore hydrocarbon activity and the over-exploitation of marine livingresources. The main part of the lecture will then consider the role thatinternational law is playing, or could play, to address those threats."
The Environmental Implications of Redistributive Land Reform
Speakers: Dr Jane Glass, University of the Highlands and Islands, Centre for Mountain Studies (Perth College UHI); Malcom Combe, University of Aberdeen and Advisor to the Land reform review group; Dr Calum Macleod, University of Edinburgh School of Geosciences.
Download the presentation slides (PDF)
What we have (not) learned: The Governance of GMOs in the EU
Speaker: Professor Maria Lee, University College of London
The Legal Character of International Environmental Obligations in the Wake of the Paris Climate Change Agreement
Speaker: Jacob Werksman, Principal Adviser, DG-CLIMA, European Commission
The European Union, the Courts and the Environment
Speaker: Mr.Stephen Tromans QC
The Future of the European Union's renewable energy law and its impact on Member States
Speakers: Prof. Dr. Marjan Peeters from Maastrict University; Mrs Jenny Hogan, Director of Policy at Scottish Renewables; Mr Chris Stark, Deputy Director for Energy and Climate Change and Head of Electricity at the Scottish Government
Download the Presentation Slides
15 Years of National Parks (Scotland) Act 2000
Speakers: Mr.Grant Moir, CEO of the Cairngorms National Park Authority; Mr. Peter Rawcliffe, People And Places Unit Manager at Scottish Natural Heritage
Freshwater and Dispute Settlement
Speaker: Professor Laurence Boisson de Chazournes, Professor of International Law, University of Geneva
Prospects and Proposals for Climate Geo-Engineering: New Challenges for Policy, Law and Regulation
Speaker: Duncan McLaren, McLaren Environmental, Sweden
The EU Internal market and the Environment: Achieving the Right Balance?
Speaker: Professor Nicholas de Sadeleer, Professor of Law, Saint-Louis Brussels
2012/2013 Lecture Series
Round table: The Future of Environmental Regulation and Enforcement in Scotland
Speakers: Bridget Marshall, Head of Operations Legal, Scottish Environment Protection Agency; Professor Colin Reid, University of Dundee
Foreign Investment and the Environment in International Law
Speaker: Jorge Viñuales, Pictet Chair in International Environmental Law, Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, Geneva
Energy Dependence and Independence
Speaker: Aileen McHarg, Professor of Public Law, University of Strathclyde
2011/2012 Lecture Series
Water Law in a Globalised World: the Need for a New Conceptual Framework
Speaker: Professor Philippe Cullet, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London
Devolution and the Development of Marine Policy in Scotland
Speaker: Linda Rosborough, Acting Director, Marine Scotland
Compensating Biodiversity Loss in the EU
Speaker: Donald McGillivray, Senior Lecturer, Kent Law School
2010/2011 Lecture Series
Antarctic Governance and Geopolitics
Speaker: Professor Martin Siegert, School of GeoSciences, Edinburgh University
Debate: Environmental Law in the Court Room
Speakers: The Right Hon Sir Robert Carnwath, Court of Appeal, England and Wales; Aidan O’Neill QC
International Environmental Law and Global Warming: New Challenges, New Approaches?
Speaker: Dr Alexander Proelss, University of Trier
2009/2010 Lecture Series
Diagonal Federalism and Climate Change: Implications for the Obama Administration
Speaker: Professor Hari Osofsky, Washington & Lee University School of Law, Virginia
Minding the Gap between Hope and Expectation: Reflections on the UK's Climate Change Act
Speaker: Professor Mark Stallworthy, Law Department, University of Swansea
Shared Competence? Is Room left for National Environmental Policy in the European Union?
Speaker: Dr Hans Vedder, Law Faculty, University of Groningen
The Århus Convention: Its impact on Environmental Law, Governance and Justice
Speaker: Professor Jonas Ebbesson, Director of Stockholm Environmental Law and Policy Centre, University of Stockholm
2008/2009 Lecture Series
The World Bank and Climate Change
Speaker: Professor David Freestone, Deputy General Counsel, The World Bank
The Water Framework Directive and the Marine Strategy Framework Directive: New Relationships between EU and International Law
Speaker: Professor Ellen Hey, Head of Department of Public International Law, Erasmus University of Rotterdam
Financing the switch to a greener economy: does Government have to get back into the energy business?
Speaker: Dr Anthony White, Managing Director, Climate Change Capital
Debate: Environmental law - making it work in the real world
Speakers: Dr Helen Zeally, Agency Board Member, SEPA and President, Scottish Environment LINK; Fraser Lovell, Regional Solicitor, Regulatory Duties, SEPA; Frances McCartney, Solicitor, Environmental Law Centre, Scotland
2007/2008 Lecture Series
Thinking Globally, Acting with Scotland
Speaker: Michael Russell MSP, Minister for Environment, Scottish Government
Let's Get Physical: Civil Liability and the Perception of Risk
Speaker: Professor Chris Hilson, School of Law, the University of Reading; Editor, Journal of Environmental Law
The Role of Environmental Courts in Developing Environmental Law: The Administrative Law Dimension
Speaker: Dr Liz Fisher, Fellow, Corpus Christi College, the University of Oxford
2006/2007 Lecture Series
Human Rights and the Environment
Speaker: Dr Maria Gavouneli, Law Faculty, University of Athens
Fashioning UK Environmental Law under Devolution
Speaker: Mr Tim Jewell, Law and Regulation Directorate-General, DEFRA
Regulation and the Environment: Taking Sanctions Seriously (An Edinburgh Law School Tercentenary Lecture)
Speaker: Professor Richard Macrory, University College London
2005/2006 Lecture Series
The return of nuclear power: does the current law constrain or promote its use?
Speaker: Professor Cameron, Centre for Energy, Petroleum and Mineral law and Policy, University of Dundee
The international regime on liability and compensation for oil pollution from ships - the environmental aspects
Speaker: Dr Man Jacobsson, Director of the International Oil Pollution and Compensation Funds, London
The EU as climate change leader? The EU emissions trading scheme
Speaker: Dr Charlotte Streck, Climate Focus, Rotterdam
2004/2005 Lecture Series
The EC Environmental Liability Directive - Prevention or Cure?
Speaker: Professor John Usher, University of Exeter
Debate: Community Benefit from Windfarms: Strategies and Practicalities
Speakers: Calum MacDonald MP, Councillor William Ross, Chairman, Sustainable Development Select Committee, Highland Council, Charles Smith, Brodies LLP
Biodiversity, Biotechnology and International Law
Speaker: Professor Catherine Redgwell, University College London
2003/2004 Lecture Series
Who owns the environment? Public trust and the economics of European environmental policy
Speaker: Professor David Pearce OBE, University College London
The reality of implementing the National Waste Plan
Speaker: Dr Colin Clark, Head of Waste Management, Highland Council
Genetically modified crops - the debate continues
Speaker: Professor Robin Grove-White, University of Lancaster
2002/2003 Lecture Series
Johannesburg and the future of International Environmental Law: Greener Still?
Speaker: Professor Alan Boyle, School of Law, University of Edinburgh
Judging Environmental Law: The Task of the ECJ
Speaker: Judge David Edward, European Court of Justice
Tenth Anniversary Conference: Land Stewardship and the Environment
Speakers: Charles Smith, Brodies; Professor George Gretton, School of Law, University of Edinburgh; Andy Wightman, Who Owns Scotland; Malcolm Strang Steel, Scottish Landowners Federation and Turcan Connell; Simon Fraser, Anderson MacArthur & Co
2001/2002 Lecture Series
The role of NGOs in developing Countryside Access and other environmental legislation
Speaker: Lloyd Austin, Head of Policy Operations, Royal Society for the Protection of Birds [Scotland]
Energy versus the Environment: An EU Solution?
Speaker: Professor Leigh Hancher, University of Tilburg
Multinational Enterprises and Environmental Damage: Is Civil Liability the Answer?
Speaker: Dr Michael Anderson, Director of the British Institute for International and Comparative Law
2000/2001 Lecture Series
Implementing an Integrated Transport Policy at a Local Level
Speaker: Councillor Mark Lazarowicz, Executive Member for Transport, Edinburgh City Council
Tangled Webs: Environmental Law in a System of Multi-Level Governance
Speaker: Joanne Scott, University of Cambridge
Risk and the Precautionary Principle
Speaker: Professor Sir Kenneth Calman, Vice-Chancellor and Warden, University of Durham
1999/2000 Lecture Series
New Opportunities and New Challenges in a Devolved Environment
Speaker: Ms Sarah Boyack MSP, Minister for Transport and the Environment, The Scottish Executive
Harmonisation vs. Regulatory Competition in Environmental Law: Getting the Level of Regulation Right
Speaker: Professor Damien Geradin, Associate Professor of Law, University of Liège and Professor, College of Europe, Brussels
Enforcing Public International Law: Recent Developments in the Environment and Trade Regimes
Speaker: Professor Jacob Werksman, Visiting Associate Professor, Institute of Advanced Studies, United Nations University; and FIELD, London
1998/1999 Lecture Series
Environmental Standards: The Interplay of Science, Policy and Public Values
Speaker: Professor Geoffrey Boulton, Dean of the Faculty of Science and Engineering, Edinburgh University; and Member of the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution
Carrots without Sticks? New Financial Mechanisms for Global Environmental Agreements
Speaker: Professor Peter Sand, Lecturer in International Environmental Law, University of Munich; former Legal Advisor for Environmental Affairs, The World Bank, Washington DC
Environmental Risk Assessment and Dispute Resolution: a Sustainable Approach
Speaker: Professor Ray Kemp, Manager Risk Services, Europe, Daimes & Moore; Visiting Professor of Risk Management and Risk Communications, University of Surrey
1997/1998 Lecture Series
Changing Perspectives on Civil Liability for Environmental Damage
Speaker: Professor Dr Hubert Bocken, University of Ghent
Beyond Command and Control: the New Legal Mechanisms for Protecting the Environment
Speaker: Professor Michael Purdue, City University, London
Conservation, Designation and Equivocation: Habitat Protection in the United Kingdom
Professor Colin Reid, University of Dundee
1996/1997 Lecture Series
Decontaminating Liability for Contaminated Land
Speaker: Stephen Tromans, Partner and Head of Environmental Law, Simmons & Simmons, London
International Environmental Law Assessed in terms of Cause and Effects
Speaker: Patrick Szell, Head of the International Environmental Law Division, Department for the Environment
European Environmental Standards v. Higher National Interests
Speaker: Professor Jans Jans, Europa Institute, Amsterdam
1995/1996 Lecture Series
Is International Environmental Law Prepared for the Millennium?
Speaker: Professor Patricia Birnie, former Director of the IMO International Maritime Law Institute and Visiting Fellow at the London School of Economics
Public Access to Environmental Information: A Means to What End?
Speaker: Professor Jeremy Rowan-Robinson, Professor of Planning and Environmental Law, University of Aberdeen
The Changing EU Treaties and their Effects on Environmental Policy
Speaker: Nigel Haigh, Director of the Institute for European Environmental Policy, London
1994/1995 Lecture Series
Enforcing Environmental Law
Speaker: Lord Slynn, Lord of Appeal and President of the United Kingdom Environmental Law Association
Trade and the Environment: The Search for Balance
Speaker: James Cameron, Director of the Foundation for International Environmental Law and Development
Transporting Environmental Law: Some Legal Reflections on the Royal Commission Report
Speaker: Professor Richard Macrory, Environmental Change Unit, University of Oxford
1993/1994 Lecture Series
Who is to be liable for damage to the environment?
Speaker: Tony Weir, Fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge
Marine oil pollution compensation with special reference to the BRAER
Speaker: Ben Browne, Clyde & Co., Solicitors
Harmonising civil liability for environmental damage in the European Union
Speaker: Ludwig Krämer, Head of Legal Matters and the Application of Community Law, DG XI of the EC Commission
