Cool World Institute held a virtual, on-line teach-in on Earth Day, April 22, 2020. That date was the 50th anniversary of the original 1970 Earth Day, in which around 20 million people participated. The original Earth Day included a teach-in, and teach-ins have been an important part of Earth Day ever since.
The purpose of the teach-in was to enable participants, who were expected to be environmental activists, not lawyers, to use the law to fight for the environment, with an emphasis on fighting climate change. The focus will be on United States law, with some information on U.S. state law and EU law.
Here is the agenda, with links to videos of the presentations and to the PowerPoint presentations:
| Time | Topic | Speaker | Presentation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9:00-9:30 | U.S. Legal landscape: how different types of law relate to one another, how to find statutes and cases, how to read legal citations | Maria Mejia, Esq. | Video Slides |
| 9:30-10:00 | How to use the Environmental Impact Assessment process to fight for the environment | Dean Wallraff, Esq. | Video Slides |
| 10:00-10:30 | California climate legislation | Nicole Capretz, Esq. | Video Slides |
| 10:30-11:00 | Using the law to protect air quality in the U.S. | David Pettit, Esq. | Video Slides |
| 11:00-11:30 | Climate litigation in the U.S. | Michael Gerrard, Esq. | Video Slides |
| 11:30-12:00 | Climate legislation and litigation in the EU | Nicolas de Sadeleer, Esq. | Video |
| 12:00-12:30 | Obtaining information from the government: Freedom of Information Act and state sunshine laws | Mitchell M. Tsai, Esq. | Video Slides |
| 12:30-1:00 | Phasing out oil and gas production | Dean Wallraff, Esq. | Video Slides |
| 1:00-1:30 | Using the law to protect water quality in the U.S. | Colin Kelly, Esq. | Video Slides |
| 1:30-2:00 | Using the law to protect endangered species | John Buse, Esq. | (Not available) |
Speaker Biographies
John Buse is Senior Counsel and General Counsel at the Center for Biological Diversity. He coordinates the Center’s legal work and handles cases involving endangered species conservation and land use. Before joining the Center in 2005, John worked for the Environmental Defense Center in Santa Barbara and Ventura, California. John received a law degree from the University of California Davis School of Law, a master’s in biochemistry from the University of Illinois at Chicago, and a bachelor’s degree in the history, philosophy, and social studies of science and medicine from the University of Chicago.
Nicole Capretz, Executive Director of Climate Action Campaign, is an environmental attorney with 20 years of experience as an energy, equity, and climate policy advisor for local governments and the nonprofit sector. Nicole was the primary author of the City of San Diego’s groundbreaking, legally binding 100% clean energy Climate Action Plan adopted in late 2015. Nicole has since played a pivotal role in helping other cities in the region adopt similar 100% clean energy climate plans, and is a prominent advocate for Community Choice Energy in Southern California. Nicole has won numerous civic awards for her climate advocacy, was named a Top 10 Californian of the Year by the New York Times in 2016, and sits on the California Strategic Growth Council, appointed by President pro tempore of the California State Senate Toni Atkins.
Nicolas de Sadeleer is EU Jean Monnet Chair at Université de Saint Louis in Brussels, Belgium. An expert in EU environmental law, he has published a dozen books on environmental law in several languages, including EU Environmental Law and the Internal Market, from Oxford University Press. He has also published over 380 articles in law reviews and edited books.
Michael B. Gerrard, Andrew Sabin Professor of Professional Practice at Columbia Law School, teaches courses on environmental law, climate change law, and energy regulation, and founded and directs the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law. He also chaired the faculty of Columbia University’s Earth Institute from 2015 to 2018. A prolific writer in environmental law and climate change, Gerrard twice received the Association of American Publishers’ Best Law Book award for works on environmental law and brownfields. He has written or edited thirteen books, including Global Climate Change and U.S. Law, the leading work in its field (second edition published in 2014, co-edited with Jody Freeman), and the 12-volume Environmental Law Practice Guide. His most recent book is Legal Pathways to Deep Dacarbonization in the United States (2019, coedited with John Dernbach).
Colin Kelly is a Senior Staff Attorney at Orange County Coastkeeper, an organization which protects water resources in Orange County, California. His responsibilities at Coastkeeper range from leading permit negotiations, testifying before state agencies to strengthen environmental protections, developing strategies for our legal actions, and supervising the legal department.
Maria Mejia‘s law practice has focused on saving communities from disastrous building developments for over 13 years. Her primary areas of practice are land-use law and environmental law, with a focus on the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).
Mitchell M. Tsai specializes in public interest environmental law with a focus on litigation under the California Environmental Quality Act and Land Use. He primarily represents public-interest organizations in connection with transportation infrastructure and development projects to support affordable housing, community benefits, healthy and safe environment, watershed protection and to fight climate change. His office has recently successfully brought cases against the Devil’s Gate Dam Sediment Removal Project in Pasadena, CA as well as the High Desert Corridor, a proposed freeway project connecting the north L.A. County cities of Palmdale and Lancaster with San Bernardino County cities of Victorville, Apple Valley, and Adelanto.
David Pettit, since joining NRDC in 2007, has focused on curbing pollution in California by litigating against industries, campaigning for clean forms of energy, and promoting green development in urban areas. He has litigated environmental cases in trial and appellate courts at both the state and the federal level, including a number of cases that have changed the way governments regulate air pollution, groundwater pollution, and habitat preservation.
Dean Wallraff is Executive Director of Cool World Institute, a non-profit that promotes cross-fertilization of climate-change litigation internationally. The law firm he founded, Advocates for the Environment, litigates environmental cases related to climate change in Southern California.