International Environmental Law and Policy / Externships

INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL LAW AND POLICY

Environmental issues are global issues. The uniqueopportunities at Vermont Law School prepare our graduatesto be leaders in international environmental law and policy.Our curriculum is enhanced by study opportunities throughour partnerships with leading foreign universities. Hands-onlearning through experiential courses, externships, and clinicsrounds out the academic experience.

INTERNATIONAL COURSES

■ Comparative U.S.-China Environmental Law

■ Global Energy Law and Policy

■ Global Food Security and Social Justice

■ International Climate Change

■ International Environmental Law and Policy

■ International Law of Food

■ International Trade and the Environment

EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING

■ In the International Climate Change course, students serve on VLS’s observer delegation, attending the Conference of theParties (COP) and supporting a Least Developed Country state party delegation to engage in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change negotiations through a service learning partnership

■ In JD Semesters in Practice and Master’s Externships, students have interned for a variety of international environmental law actors, including the UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) in Geneva; Refugee Legal Aid Project in Cairo; UN Office of Intergovernmental Support and Coordination for Sustainable Development; and the Cyrus R. Vance Center for International Justice

■ The new Transnational Environmental Law Practicum combines classroom instruction with project implementation, with students teaming up to work on an environmental-related legal or policy research project for partner organizations in China, Myanmar, Cambodia, Vietnam, or Laos

EDUCATION ABROAD OPPORTUNITIES

■ International Dual Degree with University of Cergy-Pontoise in Paris: Dual JD/M1 and M2 Degrees, with eligibility to sit for the bar exams in the United States and France

■ International Dual Degree with University of Cambridge: Dual JD/MPhil in Environmental Policy

■ Semester exchanges at University of Cergy-Pontoise, Paris; McGill University Faculty of Law, Montreal; University of Paris 1 (Panthéon-Sorbonne); and University of Trento (Italy)

ENVIRONMENTAL EXTERNSHIPS

An integral part of our environmental degree programs is gaining real-world experience through externships. Our master’s, LLM, and joint degree students explore environmental law, science, and policy in a wide variety of settings both locally and worldwide. In the Semester in Practice program and the JudicialExternship program, JD students spend a full semester off campus in a governmental, public interest, or private legal setting under the direct supervision of an experienced attorney or judge.

RECENT EXTERNSHIPS

■ American Clean Power Association

■ Animal Legal Defense Fund

■ Cape and Vineyard Electric Cooperative

■ Center for Biological Diversity

■ Center for International Environmental Law

■ Connecticut River Conservancy

■ Conservation Law Foundation

■ Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

■ Hawaiian Electric

■ National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

■ National Wildlife Federation

■ Ortus Climate Mitigation

■ Southern Environmental Law Center

■ Sustainability Code Project

■ Vermont Farm to Plate

■ Vermont Public Utility Commission

■ Vermont Office of Attorney General, Environmental Protection Division

■ U.S. Department of Interior, Office of the Solicitor

■ U.S. Department of Justice, Environment and Natural Resources Division

■ U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

■ Western Environmental Law Center

■ Private law firms in multiple states with environmental practices

“MY EXTERNSHIP EXPERIENCE WITH THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR’S OFFICE OF THE SOLICITOR IS UNPARALLELED TO ANYTHING I HAVE DONE. THE TOPICS DISCUSSED IN MY ENVIRONMENTAL LAW CLASSES CAME TO LIFE IN MY WORK EVERY DAY. THE EXPERIENCE REAFFIRMED MY APPRECIATION FOR OUR NATIONAL PARKS AND MY PASSION FOR WILDLIFE.

—MICHELLE R. AMIDZICH JD/MFALP’22