Comparative Environmental Law

Students in this course will learn comparative environmental law from a European perspective. The course examines European Union environmental laws, taking a hard look at their effectiveness in protecting the environment in its Member States. In doing so, we will compare different countries’ approaches to the use and protection of land, water, biodiversity, and energy. We will also, as time permits, discuss national approaches to difficult transboundary issues, such as dealing with climate change. Students are expected to research, write, and present a paper examining the coverage and effectiveness of the environmental law on a certain subject within water management or biodiversity protection in the USA, compared with EU environmental law system.