Presentation

Organizers:

Date:

November 13, 2024

Time:

4:00 PM – 6:00 PM

Fee:

FREE Entrance

Location:

Chapel, Maria Convent – University of Aruba

Environmental Law & Policy on Aruba

islandness and institutions

Introdutcion:

How to turn the tide on Aruban environmental law & policy? Modernize and effectively apply environmental rules? This lecture discusses Aruban decision-making and ‘islandness’, towards securing the rights of nature and to a clean environment.

Description:

This lecture looks back at almost 40 years of Aruban environmental law & policy and asks why, as consecutive governments have stated, too little progress was made, both in modernizing legal rules, but also in implementing and enforcing the existing rules, while at the same time environmental pressures are increasing, in part due to the economic success of tourism, but also in view of climate change. It seems that the call within policy plans for all those living on Aruba to act in solidarity and collectively upon their island engagement, and to move to a new economic steering model, such as of ‘sustainable tourism’, has so far failed to deliver.

The lecture applies an institutional analysis which looks at the organization of public policy and public law-making, to identify if decision-making settings are fit for the necessary transition and to trace the (possible) role of the aspect of islandness within these settings.

The lecture is not about taking a political stance, if only because lack of success bridges many different governments. Instead it aims to open a space for dialogue about the underlying causes of climate change and explore the possible solutions to effectuate the rights to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment and the rights of nature on Aruba. All participants are encouraged to actively engage in the discussion, fostering an inclusive dialogue that values diverse perspectives.

Speaker:

Prof. dr. Michiel A. Heldeweg LLM is extraordinary professor in the chair of Legal Studies of the UA Law School, an emeritus professor of Law, Governance & Technology at the University of Twente, the Netherlands, and a former administrative law judge. He has been teaching law at the UA since 2011, both in the Law and, more recently, in the SISSTEM-program – on environmental law & policy. He is an expert in (international) Environmental Law, and Law@Governance, as well as on Future proof law and Technological innovation (especially with respect to a just and effective energy transition).

Certificate Program

Prof. Heldeweg will be teaching the course on Environmental Law from October 21 to December 7, 2024. Those interested in the topics discussed in this lecture and wishing to deepen their understanding are welcome to attend the course through the Faculty’s certificate program. For more information about the course and the certificate program, please contact OSA@ua.aw

Register Here