Teaching environmental law in the 21st century

Environmental law emerged as a university subject in the 1990s but has evolved far beyond its origins. As the range and complexity of environmental laws has expanded so too has the job of teaching environmental law. However, this is not simply a matter of enlarging the number of subjects or substantive laws that are taught. It is clear that the field of environmental regulation has evolved from a series of media-specific statutes to much more integrated regimes. These complexities and the increasing interconnectedness of legal issues with other areas of environmental studies necessitate students developing an understanding of the role of law as well as other disciplines. Environmental legal education must engage with, involve an appreciation of and embrace inter-disciplinarity and multi-skilling. Environmental law, perhaps more than any other legal field, cannot be taught in a vacuum. This chapter will address the changing manner in which environmental law is taught. It will consider ways in which environmental law teachers can incorporate interdisciplinary perspectives and comparative studies into the classroom to facilitate the development of the necessary skills and knowledge in law stndents to meet future challenges.