ABOUT THE CEERA ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE
The Annual International Conference on âEnvironmental Law, Policy and Practiceâ is organized by the Centre for Environmental Education, Research and Advocacy, National Law School of India University, Bengaluru to embark upon the journey to celebrate the World Environment Day through intricate and concerted action of intellectually stimulating and socially relevant discourse on identified themes. The International Conference gains its relevance in light that, for India and other countries, with Climate Emergency being critically acclaimed worldwide, the need for a structured discourse on comparative environmental law, policy and practice is overdue.
This International Conference would inter alia, seek to deliberate on the pressing issues that concern the environment, delving into comparative legal framework on environmental protection, the interface between environment and businesses, activities that foster development, Energy security, Climate Change and Biodiversity Protection while taking into consideration the development of international framework vis-aĚ-vis national issues and concerns pertaining to the environment.
The primary focus of the Conference shall be to further the environmental law, policy and practice in the areas of climate change, biodiversity conservation, forests, wildlife and pollution, serving as a forum for discussion on critical and contemporary issues. Lastly, this conference shall facilitate an effective framework in response to increasing public awareness and concern stemming from the high-profile environmental disasters.
The ever-evolving Environmental Law is a synthesis consisting of principles, concepts and norms interwoven with other scientific disciplines. The international environmental framework is simply the reflection of the worldâs concerted effort in mitigating and reversing environmental deterioration in addition to decelerating our progress towards the Anthropocene era. Therefore, its objectives are two- fold â one, to tackle the environmental challenges and second, to conserve the environment for the future generation, thereby establishing its foundation on the concept of sustainable development.
The aspect on global environmental framework owes its existence to its principal source â the Common Law. The common law environmental principles â the parents of environmental laws guide environmental governance and judicial pronouncements in environmental matters. The environmental challenges confronting India in various spheres of pollution, wildlife and forest and bio-diversity, are also guided by these common Principles of Environmental Law. Additionally, the Environmental Rule of Law having its genesis in the United Nations Environment Programmeâs Governing Council Decision 27/9 offers a mechanism that translates environmental aspirations into effective actions, keeping in view the difficulty in the enforcement of environmental legislations.
For India and other G20 Countries, there are several reasons to shift to green energy including the need to attain carbon neutrality, as affirmed in the COP26 in 2021. Transition to any technology requires capital infusion, and path-breaking technologies require an increased investment outlay. Invention spurs development and technological competency. The International Conference would thus deliberate on the need to encourage the 3As (Availability, Accessibility and Affordability), by envisioning the principles of âVasudhaiva Kutumbakamâ towards fostering a common concerted growth. The conference will further deliberate on the intricate aspects of role of Special Purpose Vehicles, Private Equity Investment, Venture Capital Firms, Banks and Financial Institutions, spanning across industries including the energy sector, manufacturing enterprises, construction industry, transportation industry, etc.
Lastly, since environmental challenges are not bounded by international boundaries and showcase the characteristic of creeping into the international dimensions, the modern concept of the environmental law though imposition of obligations based on the principles of Common but Differentiated Responsibility and International Cooperation would be reiterated.
The select papers from the International Conference will be featured in CEERAâs flagship journal – the Journal on Environmental Law, Policy and Development, listed with UGC-CARE.
1.1 WHO MAY ATTEND THE CONFERENCE?
o Lawyers, Legal Professionals, Policy Makers and Green Advocates.
o Academicians, Students, Research Scholars from the disciplines of Law,Environmental Sciences, Management and Ethics, Environmental Engineering, or Environmental Health.
o Regulatory agencies, Officers from Pollution Control Board, Forest and Wildlife, Biodiversity Authority.
o Industry professionals, EHS managers, Compliance Personnel, Environmental Auditors, Engineers.
1.2 THEMATIC AREAS FOR PAPER PRESENTATION
o Impact of Climate Change on Vulnerable Communities
o Human action, Health, Climate, and Environmental change
o Climate Negotiation, Clean Energy and Energy Conservation o Innovation in Cleaner Technology and green energy
o Energy Security and Legal Framework on Renewable Energy
II.BUSINESSES, BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION AND PROTECTION
o Sustainability in doing Business: Over-exploitation of Environment
o Land Use, Bio-diversity Loss and Impact on the Ecosystem
o Biological Diversity Protection and principles of access and benefit sharing: Issues and Challenges
o Food security and Biodiversity Conservation
o Indigenous practices in conservation of Biodiversity
III. ENVIRONMENTAL CRIMES, FOREST RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AND WILDLIFE
o Dilution of Mens Rea in Environmental Crime
o  Environmental Courts and Access to justice
o Encroachment into the wild: Tribals, natural habitat, eco-tourism and poaching
o Indigenous Communities and Right to free, prior and informed consent for access to forest resources
IV. ABATEMENT OF DISASTER MANAGEMENT & POLLUTION
o Challenges to implementation of hazardous waste management
o Prosecution of Crimes under Pollution Control Laws
o Contemporary perspective on Waste Governance â Laws, Regulations and Policies. o Industrial Accidents, Environmental Safeguards and Pinning of Liability
1.3 SUBMISSIONS – DETAILS AND GUIDELINES:
Participants may register for the conference as an Author or Delegate/Observer.
Abstracts of not more than 500 words (excluding key words), on the above- mentioned themes are invited, submitted as Word (.doc/.docx) documents, with a covering letter containing the name, e-mail id, and designation of the author(s).
All abstracts shall contain between 4-5 keywords.
All Abstracts to be sent via e-mail to [email protected] with the subject lineâThree- day International Conferenceâ on or before April 15th 2023.
There shall be a maximum of only two Authors for each Article/ Essay; and all participants are permitted to enjoin as co-author to a maximum of one Article/ Essay only.
Potential contributors are required to adhere to a uniform mode of citation (21st edition of The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation).
Submissions accepted:
o Essays:2000-4000words(exclusiveoffootnotes)
o Articles:3000-6000words(exclusiveoffootnotes)
Authors may be expected to revise their abstracts and full essay/article submission based on reviews and comments received from the organizing team.
Contributors who are unable to travel to India would be accommodated through video-conferencing.
*After peer review, ONLY shortlisted articles and essays will be published in the Journal on Environmental Law, Policy and Development, (JELPD) listed under UGC CARE with ISSN (O) 2348-7046.
For More Details Click HERE