Students aspiring to work as environmental activists now have a new avenue in which to gain real-life experience combining law and science.
The Environmental Law and Policy Clinic opened its doors this Fall as a joint venture between the School of Law and the Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences.
The first case that the inaugural class, which consists of four graduate students, will work on is an analysis of green technology development and how it can be beneficial to companies in North Carolina.
The students will investigate how local environmental businesses can profit and blossom, said Ryke Longest, senior lecturing fellow at the law school and newly appointed founding director of the clinic.
Three of the four graduate students are participating in a joint-degree program between the law school and the Nicholas School, and one student is enrolled solely in the law school.
The clinic, funded by the law school, will have litigation capabilities allowing legal action to be brought against companies.
"One of the premises of the clinic is that we teach by real-life examples," Longest said. "This will greatly benefit anyone going into service as an environmental activist."
In the future, litigation could be brought under the Freedom of Information Act, the Clean Air Act, he said.
"We have the capability, both locally and nationally, to impact the way that environmental policy is viewed by lawmakers," he added.
Although the clinic's initial class has only four students, Longest said the enrollment cap for the spring will be eight students. The clinic will then include students from the Nicholas School and the law school.
"In the future, I would love to see us get to a size of 12 students," he said.
Administrators say the new program will further develop Duke into one of the leading institutions for environmental studies.
"The joint-degree program the law school and the Nicholas School offer probably has more students than any other top law school," James Salzman, faculty advisor for the program and professor of law, said in a statement. "Establishing this environmental law clinic is a fundamental piece in this continuing development."
The new clinic will both benefit those who are studying law and also provide Nicholas School students with practical experience in real-world environmentalism, Longest said.
"This university is on a course to train the future of environmental leaders that will one day influence decisions made by lawmakers every day," he said.
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