In honor of the 40th anniversary of the ESA, the 19th annual Public Interest Environmental Law Conference at the University of Florida Levin College of Law will focus on the evolution of endangered species protection over the past four decades. “The Endangered Species Act at 40: Polishing the Crown Jewel,” will be held Feb. 21-23 at UF Law. The event is free for all UF students and faculty – register under the “student conference” option on the registration page (there is a $35 fee to attend the opening banquet).

Click here for more information about the PIEC.

Read the full press release here.

“Fishable? Swimmable? 40 Years of Water Law in Florida and the United States,” will be held Feb. 23-25 at UF Law and will celebrate the 40th anniversary of two of the most significant laws guiding water policy in Florida – the federal Clean Water Act and the influential Florida Water Resources Act. The conference is sponsored by UF Law’s Environmental and Land Use Law Program.

Browner has administered both acts during her career. She was Florida’s Secretary of Environmental Regulation from 1991 to 1993, before serving in President Bill Clinton’s cabinet as administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency from 1993 to 2001. Browner was the longest serving administrator in the agency’s history. According to Time Magazine, Clinton’s former chief of staff called her “the greatest administrator [the] EPA ever had.” More recently, Browner directed the White House Office of Energy and Climate Change Policy from 2009 to 2011 under President Barack Obama.

Browner has vast experience in developing environmental policies and helped initiate the Food Quality Protection Act which brought pesticide use standards up to date, and worked with Congress to reauthorize the Safe Drinking Water Act.

In addition to Browner, the conference will also bring together others who have played a valuable role in shaping Florida’s water policy.

The conference begins the evening of Feb. 23, with a reception featuring University of Kentucky Professor of Law Richard Ausness, one of the authors of the 1971 Model Water Code, upon which Florida’s groundbreaking water law was largely based. A plenary session the following morning will feature UF Law’s Richard Hamann and University of Virginia law professor and former EPA General Counsel Jonathan Cannon presenting a retrospective recounting of both acts and the key cases and policy debates that have shaped them. The plenary will continue with a facilitated session of attorneys, lawmakers and administrators whose careers have shaped, and been shaped, by the Florida law.  

A special brown bag lunch event will feature authors of both recent and forthcoming “water books” discussing the role of writers in focusing attention on water policy in Florida, facilitated by longtime journalist and author, Cynthia Barnett. Afternoon concurrent panels will develop the themes of “Water+Quality,” “Water+Quantity” and “Water+Change.” The Friday night banquet will feature Browner as the keynote speaker.

Saturday’s sessions will be devoted to the current practice of water law and on the future of Florida’s water resources, including a forum led by the newly established Florida Conservation Coalition, a jobs session for Florida’s future environmental and land use lawyers, and a practice-based skills session sponsored by the Public Interest Committee of the Environmental and Land Use Law Section of The Florida Bar. The conference will wrap up with a facilitated session addressing the development of a water ethic in Florida.

To register, visit http://www.law.ufl.edu/piec/registration.shtml. To download this year’s agenda, visit http://www.law.ufl.edu/piec/pdf/PIEC-Agenda-2012.pdf.

For additional information:

Jennilyn Thiboult, Co-Chair, Public Interest Environmental Conference
jennilynft@mac.com

Allison Fischman, Co-Chair Public Interest Environmental Conference
allisonfischman@gmail.com

Matt Walker, UF Law Communications
352-273-0653, mlwalker@law.ufl.edu

“Fishable, Swimmable? 40 Years of Water Law in Florida and the United States”

2012 marks the 40th anniversary of both the Florida Water Resources Act and the federal Clean Water Act. In honor of this occasion, the 18th annual Public Interest Environmental Law Conference at the University of Florida Levin College of Law will focus on the evolution of water law and policy over the past four decades.

This year’s PIEC will feature keynote speaker Carol Browner (JD 79), former White House “energy czar” under President Barack Obama.

The conference is expected to be approved for 15 CLER credits

For more information and to register, visit http://www.law.ufl.edu/piec/.

GAINESVILLE, Fla.—Sustainability is a concept that is sweeping the nation—from hybrid vehicles to green buildings—but as a movement it is still in its emerging stage. Finding ways to help organizations discover solutions that are both sustainable and cost-effective is the focus of the thirteenth annual University of Florida Public Interest Environmental Conference (PIEC), to be held March 1-3 at UF’s Levin College of Law.

Co-sponsored by The Florida Bar Environmental and Land Use Law Section and UF Student Government, this year’s PIEC embraces the theme “Talk, Technology and Techniques: Game Plan for Green,” and addresses the movement toward sustainable “green” design, institutions, and infrastructure. The conference is free for UF students. Scholarships are available for students who attend school in Florida, and a discounted registration fee is available for out-of-state students. Registration for the conference is $85, and the banquet is an additional $35.

Panels on Friday and Saturday will cover topics such as sustainable architecture, rural stewardship, low-impact development, and green corporations, featuring speakers who are leaders in government, academics, non-governmental organizations, and the private sector. Friday morning’s roster of speakers will feature five leading academics, each of whom will focus on a technique or technology that offers promise for moving us towards sustainability. Their presentations will focus on innovative approaches for engaging market competition as a tool to promote environmental protection, valuing ecosystem services, designing energy policy and promoting green building, and a perspective on the role of litigation in attaining sustainability.

The conference is designed to provide an opportunity for meaningful conversation among a group with a diversity of perspectives but a shared commitment to sustainability. On Saturday morning, conference attendees will have the opportunity to meet in a unique workshop format for conversation with corporate leaders who are committed to sustainability, to discuss how to communicate effectively with the private sector on this topic. The finale on Saturday will explore the ethical challenges and opportunities presented by working with non-traditional partners to achieve sustainability.

The conference kicks off with a reception March 1 featuring speaker Jil Zilligen, vice president, Sustainable Business Practices at Nau Inc., a technical and lifestyle outdoor apparel company that is a unique business model built around sustainable business practices, the innovative use of technology and philanthropic partnerships.

UF President Bernie Machen, whose tenure has been marked by environmental initiatives, is the reception’s closing speaker. In 2004, Machen created the UF Water Institute, which provides a focal point for water-related research, education and public outreach programs. And in 2005, he gave sustainability a higher profile when he announced a series of measures to reduce the university’s impact on the environment. UF held its first Sustainability Day in late 2005, and in February 2006 the university named its first director of sustainability.

A Friday evening banquet at the Florida Museum of Natural History is highlighted by a keynote speech by Ray Anderson, founder and chairman of Interface, Inc. Anderson has transformed Interface, Inc. into a leader in sustainable and successful industry by redesigning processes and products, pioneering new technologies, and increasing the use of renewable materials.

Continuing Legal Education credit (13 general CLE credits, including 1.5 ethics hours) will be available for lawyers attending the conference.