Environmental Law Across Cultures

Kirk W. Junker is Professor of Law, Director of the Environmental Law Center, and Director of the International Master of Environmental Sciences Programme, Faculty of Law, University of Cologne, Germany.

• Part I Comparison 1. Why Compare? The Biological, Cognitive and Social Functions of Comparison for the Human 2. A Taxonomy of Comparison: The Accessus ad auctores Part II Institutions and Bodies of Environmental Legislation, Implementation and Dispute Resolution 3. Locating Environmental Law Functions Among Legislative, Judicial and Implementation Bodies 4. Resolution of Environmental Disputes Part III Norms and Tools of Environmental Legislation, Implementation and Dispute Resolution 5. Constitutional Provisions 6. The Interface Between Law and Politics Part IV Persons Subject to Environmental Law 7. Public Participation 8. Economic Choices Enabled by Environmental Law 9. Environmental Impact Assessment Systems 10. Environmental Crime and Enforcement 11. Conclusions Across Cultures

"Contrasting the functions of various actors and tools across a myriad of legal contexts, these authors present striking insights impacting legal cultures. The role of the citizen in law and the act of comparison in legal analysis are both key to untangling the threads of environmental responses. Offering an excellent range of environmental analyses, this book is a timely comparative tool to understand evolving environmental good governance. Practitioners, students, and a wide range of readers will find it an important contribution to gaining a deeper grasp of complex environmental legal themes." - Elizabeth Burleson, Co-Editor, Comparative Environmental Law and Regulation"Whether a student, a lecturer, practising attorney, an expert, or indeed just someone with a genuine interest you will find this text a profound study in comparative environmental law. This book goes way beyond comparing written norms and differences in practices, to include in its focus the fact that law in every societal circumstance is born of a concrete culture and its contents is therefore a consequent of the same. This text is at once historical and contemporary; covers from Canada to Chile and from India to Ethiopia and many others in between in its impressive geo-legal span. It makes the study of comparative environmental law very real through inter alia consideration of decided cases from different local, national and federal judiciaries in dissimilar legal systems in many parts of the world. From customary to statutory laws, and from constitutional principles to specific environmental laws of various countries are compared and contrasted not merely in search of differences and similarity; but to point out how justice is reasoned, defined and delivered based on history, culture, the requirements of modern life vis a vis the protection of the environment, and the meeting of human needs." - Dr. Richard A. Byron-Cox, International Law Specialist, Diplomat & Expert on Sustainable Development, United Nations"This book is a refreshing and much-needed contribution to the area of comparative environmental law. It does not shy away from taking on the complex task of comparing the approach and practice of environmental law across contrasting legal cultures. The uniqueness of this book lies in its ability to effectively combine academic rigor and depth with learning from the practice of environmental law in different cultures as many authors are also practitioners from countries as diverse as India, China, and Germany to name a few. This is a must-have for anybody working or researching environmental law in diverse legal and political contexts." - Arpitha Kodiveri, Hans Kelsen Fellow at the European University Institute's Department of Law