Environmental Laws and Sustainability: An Introduction

John C. Dernbach and Joel A. Mintz
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John C. Dernbach: Widener University Law School, 3800 Vartan Way, Harrisburg, PA 17106, USA
Joel A. Mintz: Nova Southeastern University, Shepard Broad Law Center, 3305 College Avenue, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33314, USA

Sustainability, 2011, vol. 3, issue 3, 1-10

Abstract: In this introduction to the special issue of Sustainability on environmental laws and sustainability, we attempt to synthesize key lessons from the issue’s ten substantive articles. These lessons involve the use of law to achieve integrated decision-making, the use of pre-existing laws to foster sustainability, the centrality of sub-national governments in achieving sustainability, the background law of unsustainable development, the growing importance of climate change, the need to use law to protect and restore ecological integrity, the importance of judicial review and nongovernmental organizations, the need to translate sustainability into specific legal principles, the challenge of creating an appropriate national legal structure for sustainability, the importance of sustainability assessment tools and institutions before and after laws are adopted, and the importance of “soft” law.

Keywords: environmental law; sustainability; sustainable development; integrated decision-making; law for sustainability; governance; law; legal institution (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2011
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (8)

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