Bulletins

President's Message

At the end of September I will be in Dunedin, New Zealand for the Annual Conference of the Resource Management Law Association of New Zealand.  This will be my second trip to an RMLA Conference and I am looking forward to it.  The theme of the Conference is "Southerly Change" and papers at the conference will explore how the law, and those who follow, interpret and enforce the law, can adapt the changing environment.  While the focus will be on New Zealand's Resource Management Act, adapting to change is a universal issue so I am looking forward to picking up some ideas to apply back here in Australia.  We had a great group of New Zealanders for our National Conference in Perth.  I hope to catch up with some Aussies "across the ditch" in a month's time.

You will notice that we've made a few changes to the latest edition of the National Environmental Law Review.  Our fantastic editor, Wayne Gumley, has put a lot of effort into updating the look of the journal and also continues his quest, with the assistance of our State sub-editors, to source quality articles and updates for the journal.  In addition, Wayne has also been coordinating the publication of the Fremantle Conference Papers.  We were blown away by the quality of the papers presented at the Conference and believed that they were worthy of publication as a collection.  It's taken a little while but we are nearly there and, with the assistance of Thomson Reuters, the global legal and business publisher, we will have a high quality publication as a long lasting legacy of the Fremantle Conference.

In order for the work of NELA to continue, we rely on the contributions of our members.  Members financial contributions – your membership fees – are important to ensure NELA can keep paying its bills, maintain the website and produce the NELR.  If you haven't renewed your membership – could you please do so!  Chasing up membership renewals is a drain on the precious time of our Secretariat in Canberra so if that renewal form is still sitting in your in-tray, I urge you to pick it up and post it back to Canberra with membership fee this week.

We also rely on the contributions of members in participating on State and National Executive Committees.  Various State branches (and the National body) will be holding AGM's in the coming months.  I encourage you to think about joining your local Branch committee and contributing to the vibrancy of NELA in your State.  We have had a tremendous body of people who have volunteered their time to NELA over many years and it would be great to see that tradition continue and for new people to "join the ranks".  It is worthwhile! 

Robyn Glindemann

President's Message

In mid-May, I travelled to Ottawa, Canada to attend the Air Quality and Climate Change Summit co-hosted by the Canadian Bar Association's National Environmental, Energy and Resources Law Section (NEERLS) and the American Bar Association's Section of Environment, Energy and Resources (SEER).  I had the privilege of being a keynote speaker at the Summit where I outlined the Australian response to climate change (not an easy thing to do in 30 minutes!).  The Summit was attended by over 110 lawyers from across Canada and the US coming from private practice, in-house counsel and government departments. 

With NELA's successful climate change conference in Fremantle, I was very interested to see how our colleagues across the Pacific were addressing the legal challenges associated with climate change.  It was a very interesting conference with a variety of interesting perspectives on the climate change issue being presented. 

Another objective for me in attending the Summit was to open up links between NELA and the American and Canadian Bar Associations through SEER and NEERLS respectively.  Over the last 18 months, the NELA National Executive has been developing a strategy for strengthening ties with likeminded organisations.  While in Ottawa, I had several discussions with Executive members of both sections and there was universal interest in developing links between the CBA, ABA and NELA. 

Initially, these links will be fairly simple, for example linking websites and exchanging relevant information about environmental laws and law reform between our groups.  But the intention is for the relationship to grow over time and may include things like providing articles for NEERLS or SEER publications and for the National Environmental Law Review to publish articles from our North American counterparts. 

Developing these links builds on our existing strong relationship with the Resource Law Management Association of New Zealand – where both Executives have now agreed to sign a Memorandum of Understanding to outline our approach to reciprocal membership rights across the organisations and provide some guidelines around publishing articles in our respective journals.  The MoU will hopefully signal the beginning of a much deeper relationship with the RMLA both at the Executive level but also open up some dialogue amongst the membership.As you know, NELA is a member of the IUCN – The World Conservation Union and the Oceania Regional office has recently secured modest funding to support the establishment of the Fiji Environmental Law Association.  The patron of FELA is Ratu Joni Madraiwiwi, a former High Court judge, former Vice-President, traditional chief and widely respected public figure in Fiji.  With the recent commencement of the Environment Management Act 2005 in Fiji, the formation of FELA is timely as this statute begins to "flex its muscles".  I have written to the convenor of FELA to express NELA's congratulations on the creation of FELA and we look forward to working with FELA members when the group really gets going.All of these international links, while relatively small, go towards raising NELA's profile internationally.  Obviously, this benefits NELA as an organisation, but as we develop good working relationships with our overseas colleagues, I hope that our members will take advantage of these networks, either to access information about foreign environmental law or policy that you might not otherwise have access to (or be aware of) or to get in touch with environmental lawyers overseas.

Robyn Glindemann

President's Report

I promise that this will be the last message that deals with the 2008 National Conference!! 

For those members (old and new) who attended, thanks for making it a really terrific two days in Perth.  I was completely blown away by the quality of our speakers and their presentations.  At the beginning of the Conference I said that I hoped that people would find it challenging and thought provoking.  Well it certainly was that and I'll add INSPIRING as well.

Many themes arose out of the Conference - the pace of climate change and the development in scientific knowledge since the release of the IPCC Fourth Assessment Reports in 2007; the need to look at our planning systems and principles to encourage better land use; the need to look beyond our own national borders to learn from our neighbours; proper consideration of the suite of options to respond to climate change from emissions trading schemes to better incentives for renewable energy development; understanding the new issues for property transactions; and looking forward to the future and understanding what implementation of the precautionary principle and intergenerational equity really means in the context of adapting to climate change.

I was inspired listening to the speakers and the issues and questions they raised.

I said at the end of the Conference that with all that talent in the Conference room, we had an opportunity to really make a difference.  I genuinely believe that and am keen to maintain the momentum created by the Conference to start tackling some of the tricky issues that responding and adapting to climate change poses.    Stay tuned - but as always, if you have any ideas please let me know!

I would also like to formally thank the Conference Committee.  Time did not permit me to name everyone at the Conference, but I will do so here -

• The WA Conference Committee: Andrew Disney (President), Kathryn Barras (Treasurer), Lisa Ranford (Social functions - and the Rottnest Tour was wonderful!!), Chris Sullivan (Speakers); Merinda Logie, Gemma Nugent, Lindsey Phelong-Beck, Matthew Pudovskis, Sara Vanden Hoogen, Anna Wasylkewycz, Simon Taylor, Tim Macknay and Sally Raine

• Our Conference Liaison and Logistics Team: Daniel and Jackie Eigenmann from MarketFirst

• Our NELA National Secretariat: Jillian Smith, Howard Grant and Sue Hart

You were all marvellous!!

Robyn Glindemann

President

  FROM THE PRESIDENT

For the last year I have mentioned the 2008 National Conference in every President's message.  All of a sudden, it's now 2008 and the National Conference is a little over a month away!  Registrations have been fantastic - we have over 100 delegates registered to date and the Conference is nearly a sellout.  We do have a quality lineup of speakers from Australia and New Zealand for Conference delegates and if the submitted abstracts are anything to go by, this Conference will provide lots of food for thought on a wide range of climate change related issues.  I am really looking forward to welcoming delegates to Perth and the Conference.  It's going to be a fantastic two days. 

Another development on the National front is the publication of the first report under our Environmental Law Roundtable of Australia and New Zealand (ELRANZ) banner - "Report on Penalty Infringement Notices (PINS) for Environmental Offences: A Step Towards Consensus on the Law across Australia & New Zealand".  As you will remember, ELRANZ is a joint project with the Resource Management Law Association of New Zealand.  The report follows the PINS discussion paper published in August 2006.  A number of printed copies have been produced and will be distributed to law makers in each Australian jurisdiction and in New Zealand.  You can obtain your own hard copy directly from the Canberra Secretariat, or you will be able to download a pdf version of the report from the NELA website.  Many thanks to the ELRANZ Convenor, John Haydon, and our colleagues at the RMLA for organising the publication of the report.

At the NELA National Executive meeting, the 2008 Business Plan was agreed.  In 2008, we will continue to strive to provide better service delivery for NELA members and will consolidate the progress made in developing links with like-minded organisations in Australia and overseas.

Robyn Glindemann

President

 FROM THE PRESIDENT

Season’s greetings to all NELA members from the Executive. We are looking forward to a great conference in March next year, and taking NELA forward to bigger and better places in 2008. You should by now have received the Conference registration brochure which has been emailed to all members. It is also available for downloading from the NELA website. The hard copy version has unfortunately been delayed in printing, but will be available and distributed early in the New Year. If you have any queries or require further information about the Conference, please contact the Secretariat on 02 6286 7515.

Robyn Glindemann

President

Office Bearers for 2008:

President: Robyn Glindemann

Vice Presidents: Greg Rose, Stefani White

Treasurer: Matthew Baird

Secretary/Public Officer: Howard Grant

Immediate Past President: Tim Mellor

Directors of the Company are:

Robyn Glindemann, Glen McLeod, Tim Mellor, Greg Rose

The Executive Committee for 2008 now comprises the Office Bearers listed above and State Representatives as follows:

NSW:    Matthew Baird

Qld:       Scott Sellwood

SA:       Martha Savva

Tas:     Tom Baxter

WA:     Andrew Disney

Vic:      Elisa de Wit

 Note from the President

Hasn't the year passed quickly?  It's hard to believe that it is nearly AGM time again.  The notice for the AGM on 30 October has been sent out by our Secretariat in Canberra.  It will be a teleconference commencing at 5pm in Western Australia.  Thanks to daylight saving it means for those in New South Wales, the ACT, Victoria and Tasmania, it will be at 7pm.  For those in Queensland, it will be at 6pm while if you are in lovely South Australia, it will be at 6.30pm.  I hope I have that correct – but if you are confused, just ring the Secretariat!!

Despite all the daylight saving rigmarole, I encourage you to be online for the AGM.  It's an important part of the annual "life" of NELA and a great opportunity to have your say.Apart from the statutory office bearers, the NELA National Executive is formally comprised of at least one representative from each State or Territory, with the representatives being nominated by their State or Territory branch committee.  Traditionally, the Executive has also co-opted people who have a particular role within the organisation.  However, notwithstanding the formal rules, if you have ever thought about becoming involved in a national organisation, let me encourage you to think about becoming a part of the NELA National Executive.  If you'd like to know what it involves, contact me through the Secretariat.

Thank you to all who've renewed your membership for the 2007/2008 financial year.  There are still a few outstanding current members and the plan is to contact each of those people directly to remind them about their membership.  The goal of the National Executive is to dramatically increase our membership this year and a new recruitment strategy is being developed and refined to help us along, particularly to reach out to university students through the relevant faculty members and student societies.  NELA has always had a strong connection to universities around the country and it would be great to develop those ties even more with a vibrant group of student members.

The 2008 National Conference Committee continues to work very hard and the Conference is coming together very well.  We hope to make the most of the wonderful WA coastal setting for the Conference so for those of you who have not visited Perth before, we hope that this will be a great introduction!  The Conference is being promoted in New Zealand through the Resource Management Law Association so this will also be a great opportunity to meet with colleagues from "across the ditch". 

Robyn Glindemann

President

NOTE FROM THE PRESIDENT:
    
Season’s greetings to all NELA members from the Executive. We are looking forward to a great conference in March next year, and taking NELA forward to bigger and better places in 2008. 

You should by now have received the Conference registration brochure which has been emailed to all members. It is also available for downloading from the NELA website. The hard copy version has unfortunately been delayed in printing, but will be available and distributed early in the New Year. If you have any queries or require further information about the Conference, please contact the Secretariat on 02 6286 7515. 

Robyn Glindemann

President 

NELA ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 2007:

The NELA Annual General Meeting was held in Perth on Tuesday 30 October 2007 and a copy of the minutes of the meeting, the President’s report and audited financial statements were included in the recent NELR mail out. Office Bearers of NELA were determined at a meeting of the Executive Committee held on 7 November 2007. 

Office Bearers for 2008 are: President: Robyn Glindemann. Vice Presidents: Greg Rose, Stefani White. Treasurer: Matthew Baird. Secretary/Public Officer: Howard Grant. Immediate Past President: Tim Mellor 

Directors of the Company are:Robyn Glindemann, Glen McLeod, Tim Mellor, Greg Rose 

The Executive Committee for 2008 now comprises the Office Bearers listed above and State Representatives as follows:  NSW: Matthew Baird    Qld:Scott Sellwood    SA: Martha Savva   Tas:Tom Baxter    WA:Andrew Disney   Vic: Elisa de Wit

 FROM THE PRESIDENT 

You may (or may not) be aware that NELA is a member of The World Conservation Union (IUCN). Founded in 1948, The World Conservation Union is the world's largest conservation network. The Union brings together 83 States, 110 government agencies, more than 800 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) - including NELA, and some 10,000 scientists and experts from 181 countries in a unique worldwide partnership.

The Union's mission is to influence, encourage and assist societies throughout the world to conserve the integrity and diversity of nature and to ensure that any use of natural resources is equitable and ecologically sustainable.  The Union supports and develops cutting-edge conservation science; implements this research in field projects around the world; and then links both research and results to local, national, regional and global policy by convening dialogues between governments, civil society and the private sector.[1]

The Union recently established a Regional Office in Fiji.  The focus of the Office will be on issues and activities in the Pacific Area.  A member of the NELA National Executive attended a recent Regional Members meeting in New Zealand and returned enthused by the opportunities to become involved in the work that the Union is doing in the Pacific region. 

The goals and objectives of the Union are very much aligned with NELA's vision of communication and education in the environmental realm.  At the last National Executive meeting, the Executive resolved to support the work of the Union in the Pacific and as a starting point, ensure that NELA was included on the mailing list to be notified about relevant Pacific activities (particularly in Australia).  More information about the Union and its work in Australia will be communicated through the NELA website as that information comes to hand. 

In the meantime, if you would like to know more about the Union, you can look at its website (http://www.iucn.org/) or click through from the NELA website (on the links page).

The conference program for the National Conference in 2008 is 95% settled - stay tuned for news soon about topics and speakers.  It's going to be a great conference so mark off the 27^th and 28^th of March 2008 in your calendars!  It's also a lovely time of year to be in Perth so take a look at some of links on the NELA website for ideas of things to do and places to see while you are here.

As always, if you haven't renewed your membership for the 2007/2008 financial year - please do so as soon as possible.

Robyn Glindemann

President

[1] Taken from The World Conservation Union website - www.iucn.org

FROM THE PRESIDENT:

I hope the 2008 NELA National Conference is in your calendars!

Good progress continues to be made in relation to the Conference in Perth. The theme of the Conference is the Law of Climate Change. While there continues to be a plethora of climate change related conferences out there (it's hard to keep up!), the aim of the 2008 NELA Conference Committee is to put together a conference program that is challenging and thought provoking and focuses on the law and not necessarily the policy of climate change (although necessarily there will be a bit of policy!!). After all, NELA's vision is to be a leader in the development and promotion of environmental law and by March next year, we will be starting to see some of the legal ramifications of Federal and State and Territory – based climate change policies.

The response to the Committee's call for papers has been absolutely fantastic. The Committee is currently processing the many proposals that have been received and will be in contact with those of you who have made a submission shortly. However, if you do have an idea for the Conference – it might be a topic, or a particular speaker you'd like to hear, please let the Secretariat know. The Committee is always pleased to receive ideas, and will consider them whenever they are submitted.Our website continues to be refined and upgraded.

The new website represents a big step forward for NELA so please be patient while we iron out bugs (and outdated information).

NELA membership renewals are included with this Bulletin. I encourage you to pay your renewals promptly to minimise the chance of a follow up email or call later in the year! NELA continues to be a dynamic organisation around Australia and there is a lot of opportunity for NELA to really make a difference at a local and a national level. If you would like to become more involved in NELA at the local level, or you have a seminar or other idea for the local Committee please contact your Committee representative, or the Secretariat. All local Committee members generously volunteer their time to run seminar programs for you and are always on the lookout for fresh ideas!

As always, if you have any thoughts about NELA please do not hesitate to contact me.

Robyn Glindemann

President