In the fall of 2021, Sean Anderson ’22 walked into the first day of UCLA School of Law’s California Environmental Legislation and Policy Clinic and took on an assignment that would ultimately become his job — though he didn’t know it at the time.
Date: Wednesday, April 17 at 12:15pm
RSVP Here: https://forms.gle/o5zrLJBouwC5feEU8
“Highly Charged,” An expert panel focused on the role of rate design in promoting equity as we decarbonize the electric power system, including a discussion of California’s often misunderstood Income-Graduated Fixed Charge.
Change is coming to the way we pay our electricity bills in California thanks to what’s called an “income-graduated fixed charge.” But the proceeding charged with implementing that change has become politically fraught. This ongoing debate is comprised of multiple interrelated questions about equity, decarbonization, and reliability of the electric power system. Divergent visions for the future of the power sector sit at the center of the discussions over how we should distribute systemwide costs, which electricity rate design will best support greenhouse gas emission reductions, and how we can ensure reliable electricity service at the same time essential electrification efforts increase strain on the grid.
Come hear a discussion about the opportunities and limitations to rate design as a tool to enhance equity in the state. Our panelists include tenant, ratepayer, and environmental advocates, as well as a Senior Analyst at the Public Utility Commission and UCLA’s own energy law expert, Professor William Boyd.
Panelists:
Nihal Shrinath, Associate Attorney, Sierra Club
Sylvie Ashford, Energy & Climate Policy Analyst, the Utility Reform Network
Chelsea Kirk, Director of Policy and Research, Strategic Actions for a Just Economy
Ankit Jain, Senior Analyst, California Public Utility Commission
William Boyd, Professor of Law and Emmett Institute Co-Director, UCLA
Lunch served on a first come, first served basis for those who RSVP by 04/14/24
Date: Wednesday, April 3, 2024
Time: 12:15pm – 1:15pm
Location: UCLA School of Law, room 1457
RSVP: Register here. Registration required to attend.
Co-Sponsored by: Lowell Milken Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofits
Maurice Salter Endowed Lecture in Nonprofits and Philanthropy
A conversation with pioneering conservationist Kris Tompkins about how to forge an environmental career dedicated to public service.
Kris Tompkins is president and co-founder of Tompkins Conservation. She began her journey as an environmentalist in Southern California as one of the first six employees of Patagonia. She went on to lead the company for many years before she and her husband, Doug Tompkins (founder of The North Face and co-founder of Esprit), left their business careers to devote their lives to addressing the climate and extinction crises. Tompkins currently oversees projects in Chile and Argentina working toward creating parklands, marine conservation areas, and rewilding—the process of protecting and restoring ecosystems. Tompkins was the subject of “Wild Life,” a documentary from the Oscar-winning duo behind “Free Solo.”
Tompkins will join Emmett Institute Staff Attorney Juan Pablo Escudero and Jill Horwitz, Faculty Director of the Lowell Milken Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofits, in a conversation about her conservation work from Southern California to South America and lessons for those beginning their environmental career.
Lunch will be provided on a first-come basis to those who RSVP by 03/31/2024.
Please contact Heather Morphew, morphew@law.ucla.edu with any questions.
For a deeper dive into the ongoing environmental justice work in South East Los Angeles, join ELS and Communities for a Better Environment for a Toxic Tour this Friday, March 15th. Come along on this immersive experience to see how low-income communities of color have been impacted by toxic sources, hear the personal stories of local residents as they have struggled to hold government and industry accountable, and learn from community organizers and lawyers. Our bus, generously provided by the Emmett Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, will depart from the Bruin Bus stop at Wyton Drive at 9am and return by 3pm. Limited seats available—please contact Kendall Chappell at chappell2025@lawnet.ucla.edu to reserve your spot.
UCLA School of Law professor Ann Carlson is back at the law school after she steered the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration through several impactful years.
Chile is one of the world’s largest producers of lithium, a critical mineral essential to batteries and the global clean energy transition. Mr. Bitran will join us to talk about the opportunities and challenges for the country, including how Chile is navigating increasingly complex geopolitical and economic competition among the US, China, the EU, and other nations.
Date: Thursday, March 7th
Time: 12:15pm – 1:30pm
Location: Room 1447, UCLA School of Law
RSVP: https://forms.gle/WwumaWrnmT4pfasn7
Lunch will be provided to those who RSVP at the link above.
Join us for this Emmett Institute event.
Date: Monday, March 4
Time: 12:15pm – 1:30pm
Location: Room 1457
RSVP here: https://forms.gle/fQFEYr9Nz4JaY3BD8
The climate crisis requires a monumental effort to build green infrastructure, high-density housing, and transit. But America is not moving fast enough. That much, the environmental movement can agree on. But the debate over what exactly is standing in our way and how to clear the path to a healthier future remains a subject of debate so fierce that the Atlantic recently called this a “culture war tearing American environmentalism apart.”
Disagreement over so-called “permitting reform” is often about how much community engagement we want to require of projects. Prof. James Salzman and his co-author first coined the phrase the Greens’ Dilemma to explain the tension between old environmental laws and new environmental priorities. Prof. David Adelman studied a decade-worth of federal permits and environmental reviews for energy infrastructure to find that most projects enjoyed streamlined administrative procedures. Jen Ganata works to defend frontline communities from economic and environmental harms. Together, these panelists will help us define the problem and discuss some solutions. So, what do we want? When do we want it? And who gets to decide?
David Adelman, Harry Reasoner Regents Chair in Law at the University of Texas School of Law
Jen Ganata, Senior staff attorney, Communities for a Better Environment
James Salzman, Donald Bren Distinguished Professor of Environmental Law at the UCLA School of Law and UC Santa Barbara.
Lunch will be provided to those who RSVP by 02/29. Please note that lunch is not guaranteed for any RSVPs received after Thursday, Feb 29 at noon
RSVP link: https://forms.gle/rwqsRWsHcUiPQMmm7
Cooperating for the Climate Book Talk with Joanna Lewis
China is the world’s largest producer of both CO2 emissions and green technology, so that nation is playing an outsized role in deploying green energy technologies to address the climate crisis. What is the current state of international climate cooperation with China and what does history teach us?
Joanna Lewis will present the results from her new book, “Cooperating for the Climate,” which examines motivations, science, and politics behind international clean energy technology collaboration with China. Her talk will be followed by a discussion with Prof. Alex Wang, Faculty Co-Director of the Emmett Institute.
Joanna I. Lewis is Provost's Distinguished Associate Professor of Energy and Environment and Director of the Science, Technology and International Affairs Program at Georgetown University's Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service. She is the author of the award-winning book “Green Innovation in China” and was a lead author of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's Fifth Assessment Report.
Cosponsored by: UCLA Asia Pacific Center
Mining is mission-critical to addressing the climate crisis. And so is confronting the legal and environmental issues surrounding mineral extraction.
Jurisdictions across the globe are racing to transform their energy sources to meet decarbonization goals and transition away from fossil fuels. This energy transition depends on a robust and reliable supply of critical minerals, which must be mined, processed, and distributed in ways that often create environmental and health risks, and in the process can reshape global political dynamics.
The Emmett Institute’s 2024 symposium will explore the wide range of pressing issues raised by this ever-expanding need for critical minerals. Our moderators and panelists from around the world will confront the policy drivers of this energy transition; governance questions related to supply chains; the rise of resource nationalism with its implications for the U.S. and the global order; and the risks to communities created by critical minerals mining and ways to reduce those risks.
Join us on Friday, March 8 at the UCLA School of Law for an all-day exploration of these topics through a keynote address and three panel discussions. Please RSVP here at this link and stay tuned for more details about the symposium.
Date: Friday, March 8, 2024
Location: UCLA School of Law
This is an in-person event.