9th Marine Law Symposium (Nov. 2012)

SHIFTING SEAS: The Law's Response to Changing Ocean Conditions

November 14 & 15, 2012
Roger Williams University School of Law

This Symposium examined the laws and policies that are implicated as climate change impacts coastal and ocean environments. The land-sea boundary is shifting, ocean water is warmer and more acidic, fluctuating weather conditions and storms increasingly impact coastal communities, and the melting Arctic ice cap raises new international boundary and resource exploitation issues. These changes trigger many corresponding legal considerations for natural resource managers, planners, attorneys, insurers and law enforcement entities.  At this Symposium, experts and legal practitioners from governmental bodies as well as private industry, academia and non-profit organizations explored the state of the law, how disputes have been handled to date, and what may be on the horizon. Attendees took away the law and policy tools necessary to engage in these rapidly changing issues, and an understanding of the natural and social science behind changing coastal and ocean conditions.

FINAL PROGRAM

FINAL AGENDA

ATTENDEE LIST

Symposium Tackles Impact of Global Warming on Coastal Communities
Dean David Logan's Blog
December 10, 2012

Sandy bears down on symposium
Richard Salit, Providence Sunday Journal
November 18, 2012

R.I. Coast at Center of Marine Climate Crisis
Tim Faulkner, ecoRI
November 16, 2012

Scientists: Record temps will alter landscape
Doug Fraser, Cape Cod Times
November 16, 2012

OPENING and DR. WILLIAM B. CURRY, KEYNOTE SPEAKER

DR. LAURA PETES, KEYNOTE SPEAKER

GEOFF FEINBERG, KEYNOTE SPEAKER

J. DAVID BREEMER, KEYNOTE SPEAKER

PANEL 1

PANEL 2

PANEL 3

PANEL 4

PANEL 5

PANEL 6

POWERPOINTS
Keynotes
Dr. William B. Curry, Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences 
Dr. Laura Petes, NOAA Climate Programs Office
Geoff Feinberg, Yale Project on Climate Change Communication
J. David Breemer, S.J. Quinney College of Law, University of Utah

Panel 1  Shifting Sands: Implications of Changing Ocean-Land Boundaries
Dr. Isaac Ginis, University of Rhode Island
Thomas Ruppert, University of Rhode Island
Caroline A. Karp, Brown University
Dr. Louis A. Gritzo, FM Global Insurance

Panel 2  State and Municipal Case Studies - New England
Grover Fugate, Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council
William E. Taylor, Esq., Pierce Atwood LLP
Joseph A. MacDougald, University of Connecticut School of Law
Dr. Syma A. Ebbin, Connecticut Sea Grant
Julia Knisel, Massachusets Coastal Zone Management

Panel 3  The Emerging Artic
Dr. Larry Mayer, University of New Hampshire
Kirsten Ullbaek Selvig, Ministry of Fisheries and Coastal Affairs, Norway
Walter A. Berbrick, U.S. Navel War College
Betsy A. Baker, Vermont Law School

Panel 4  Warming Waters: Implications of Resource Management
Dr. Kevin Friedland, NOAA Northeast Fisheries Science Center
Alison Rieser, University of Hawaii at Manoa
Tricia K. Jedele, Conservation Law Foundation
Robin Kundis Craig, S.J. Quinney College of Law, University of Utah

Panel 5  Full Steam Ahead: Implications for the Maritime Industry
Michael Savonis, ICF International
Austin Becker, Stanford University
Ronald E. Beck, U.S. Coast Guard
Paul Heylman, Saul Ewing, LLP

Panel 6  State and Municipal Case Studies - Beyond New England
Melissa Trosclair Daigle, Louisiana Sea Grant Law & Policy Program
Steve Goldbeck, San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission
Dr. Thomas L. Linton, Texas A&M University at Galveston
Jessica Grannis, Georgetown Law School

RESOURCE MATERIALS

Background Document for Symposium Attendees
Casey Schickling, J.D. Candidate 2014

Ecosystem Advisory for the Northeast Shelf Large Marine Ecosystem 
NOAA Northeast Fisheries Science Center, August, 2012

Planning Committee

Terra Bowling, Research Counsel, National Sea Grant Law Center
Michael Burger, Associate Professor, Roger Williams University School of Law
Michael J. Daly, Esq., Associate, Pierce Atwood
Susan E. Farady, Director, Marine Affairs Institute/RI Sea Grant Legal Program, Roger Williams University School of Law
Kristen Fletcher, Executive Director, Coastal States Organization
Dennis Nixon, Associate Dean, Graduate School of Oceanography, University of Rhode Island
Robbin Peach, Executive Director, Collaborative Institute for Oceans, Climate and Security, University of Massachusetts Boston 

If you have any questions, please contact the Marine Affairs Institute at marineaffairs@rwu.edu or 401-254-5392.

Close Course Type Descriptions

Course Types

We have classified RWU Law classes under the following headers. One of the following course types will be attached to each course which will allow students to narrow down their search while looking for classes.

Core Course

Students in the first and second year are required to take classes covering the following aspects of the law—contracts, torts, property, criminal law, civil procedure, and constitutional law, evidence, and professional responsibility.  Along with these aspects, the core curriculum will develop legal reasoning skills.

Elective

After finishing the core curriculum the remaining coursework toward the degree is completed through upper level elective courses.  Students can choose courses that peak their interests or courses that go along with the track they are following.

Seminar

Seminars are classes where teachers and small groups of students focus on a specific topic and the students complete a substantial research paper.

Clinics/Externships

Inhouse Clinics and Clinical Externships legal education is law school training in which students participate in client representation under the supervision of a practicing attorney or law professor.  RWU Law's Clinical Programs offer unique and effective learning opportunities and the opportunity for practical experience while still in law school.