Scholars and environmentalists at Vermont Law School recently launched a New Economy Law Center to explore the role of law and policy change in transitioning to a new economy. The center is the first virtual community of law and policy scholars of its kind, with fellows working across multiple disciplines, states, and countries.
Center co-founders Gus Speth and VLS Associate Dean and Associate Professor Melissa Scanlan collaborate with center fellows who work as law professors, economists, writers, entrepreneurs, religious leaders, and activists. Together they plan to engage students and scholars around the world with symposia and investigations focused on law and policy for the new economy, prioritizing ecological integrity, vibrant democracy, and social justice.
"Our current system of political economy is characterized by sweeping environmental costs, runaway consumerism, and a GDP growth fetish," said Speth, co-founder of the Natural Resources Defense Council and former dean of the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. "It is misaligned to meet global imperatives to reduce greenhouse gases and to share wealth more equitably."
"The new economy movement has emerged to provide an alternative system that could speed up our transition to a low-carbon economy," said Scanlan. "New laws and policies are essential in providing the architecture for this new economy, and our center will provide a framework for people to share best practices and develop concepts from around the world."
Examples of the new economy at VLS include the Energy Clinic, which helps communities develop solar projects, and the Food and Agriculture Clinic, which develops and disseminates legal and policy tools for new food movement stakeholders, including farmers, food producers and entrepreneurs, and consumers.
"Vermont Law School is a pioneer in the practical demonstration of law for the new economy, but there are examples of the new economy all around us," said Speth, citing the Next System Project and Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE), among others. "The New Economy Law Center has brought together an impressive group of thought leaders, and we look forward to working together to influence law and policy change that benefits people and planet as our new global economy continues to emerge."
For more information about the New Economy Law Center, including current fellows, visit vermontlaw.edu/academics/centers-and-programs/new-economy-law-center.
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Vermont Law School, a private, independent institution, is home to the nation’s largest and deepest environmental law program. VLS offers a Juris Doctor curriculum that emphasizes public service; three Master’s Degrees—Master of Environmental Law and Policy, Master of Energy Regulation and Law, and Master of Food and Agriculture Law and Policy; and four post-JD degrees —LLM in American Legal Studies (for foreign-trained lawyers), LLM in Energy Law, LLM in Environmental Law, and LLM in Food and Agriculture Law. The school features innovative experiential programs and is home to the Environmental Law Center, South Royalton Legal Clinic, Environmental and Natural Resources Law Clinic, Energy Clinic, Food and Agriculture Clinic, and Center for Applied Human Rights. For more information, visit www.vermontlaw.edu, find us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter.