This two-week intensive field placement will explore international environmental legal and policy themes through the lens of environmental issues in Ecuador. The course will be offered in Cuenca, Ecuador and will combine substantive classroom instruction with field-based skills training. Students will have the opportunity to work on live legal issues directly with Ecuador-based lawyers, clients, and organizational partners. Ecuador is one of the most biodiversity-rich countries, with an extraordinarily diverse landscape and an equally diverse population at a crossroads on environmental issues. With one of the few constitutions that recognizes both the right to a healthy environment and the rights of nature, Ecuador offers a unique case study of the some of the most pressing international environmental law and policy issues, including biodiversity conservation, climate change, urban sustainability, landscape protection, human rights, and the rights of indigenous peoples.
The course will be open to both law students and CAS students. For ENVS students to participate, you would need to register immediately for the summer 2015 Ecuador overseas program; please contact the Overseas office for details. Undergraduate participants will receive 8 credits of Spanish language, plus IS 241 credit for the summer program.