Arctic Sovereignty: Cold Facts, Hot Issues October 3, 2008

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

On Friday, October 3, 2008, Southwestern Law School is hosting a symposium on Arctic Sovereignty (titled Arctic Sovereignty: Cold Facts, Hot Issues). If you are in Los Angeles or interested in the topic, I hope you will consider attending – or will pass this email on to others who you think might be interested.
Drawing on Southwestern's strong ties with Canada, this one-day symposium will bring together leading legal figures from throughout North America to analyze the critical issues raised by the Arctic sovereignty debate. With the Arctic ice melting, Russia's flag-planting at the North Pole last summer, recent Canadian activity in the north, renewed U.S. interest in the Law of the Sea Convention, and the Greenland summit, there has been tremendous attention given to Arctic Sovereignty and the "race to the Arctic." So far though few U.S. law schools have given the legal issues an in-depth treatment. We hope to change that. Here are links to: (1) the symposium brochure; (2) the symposium webpage; and (3) a recent National Law Journal article describing the symposium.
We are very pleased that leading scholars and government officials -- from law schools and other organizations throughout the United States and Canada – will be attending, with expertise in international law, environmental law, climate change, indigenous rights and human rights. The proceedings will be published in the Southwestern Journal of International Law. Presenters at the symposium include (listed alphabetically):

· Wil C.G. Burns, senior fellow at Santa Clara University School of Law

· Rebecca M. Bratspies, associate professor of City University of New York School of Law

· Rosemary Cooper, political coordinator at Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami

· Günther Handl, professor of public international law at Tulane University Law School

· Noah D. Hall, assistant professor of law at Wayne State University Law School

· Sara Krakoff, associate professor of law at the University of Colorado School of Law

· Suzanne Lalonde, professeure agrégée at the Université de Montrèal

· Robert E. Lutz, professor of law at Southwestern Law School

· Larry A. Mayer, professor and director of the Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping at the University of New Hampshire

· Ted L. McDorman, professor of law at the University of Victoria Faculty of Law

· John Norton Moore, professor of law and director of the Center for Oceans Law & Policy at the University of Virginia Law School

· Angela Riley, professor of law at Southwestern Law School

· J. Ashley Roach, of the Office of the Legal Advisor at the U.S. Department of State

· Sophie Thériault, professeure adjointe at the Universitè de Ottawa



Best,

Austen Parrish

* * * * *

Austen L. Parrish

Vice Dean for Academic Affairs

Professor of Law and Director, Vancouver Summer Law Program

Southwestern Law School

Phone: 213.738.5728 Fax. 213.738.6614

Official Website: http://www.swlaw.edu/academics/cocurricular/journaloflaw/ljsymp_arctic