Responses to Global Warming: Law, Economics, and Science of Climate Change

Posted by on October 27, 2006

The University of Pennsylvania Law Review, in conjunction with

The University of Pennsylvania Law School Program on Law, the Environment and the Economy, will hold a two day Symposium on the law, economics and science of decentralized responses to global warming.

RESPONSES TO GLOBAL WARMING: THE LAW, ECONOMICS, AND SCIENCE OF CLIMATE CHANGE

University of Pennsylvania Law School
Levy Conference Center
Thursday, November 16 & Friday, November 17, 2006

Precis: In the United States, the regulation of greenhouse gas emissions has recently moved from theory to reality. This has occurred not through centralized, federal law and regulations, but rather through decentralized action: state regulation and lawsuits brought by state and non-governmental organization plaintiffs seeking to compel federal regulation or, alternatively, to attach common law liability to firms whose processes or products generate greenhouse gas emissions. This Symposium brings together some of the world?s leading scholars to critically analyze the law, economics, and science of these recent decentralized responses to global warming. The Symposium not only marks the first time that a major American law review has devoted an issue to the regulation of global warming, but this is also a uniquely international and interdisciplinary event, with papers and commentary not only by leading American legal scholars but also by atmospheric scientists, economists, and political scientists from both the United States and Europe.

Schedule
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 16, 9:30am – 5:45pm
ALTERNATIVE GLOBAL WARMING POLICIES: POTENTIAL, PROBLEMS, AND PITFALLS

Prof. Kirsten Engel (University of Arizona College of Law), Getting to Climate Change Regulation: The Potential and the Limitations of Common Law Liability Actions With commentary by Prof. Thomas W. Merrill (Columbia University School of Law)

Prof. Daniel Farber (University of California, Berkeley, School of Law), Compensating the Victims of Climate Change With commentary by Prof. Matt Adler (University of Pennsylvania Law School)

DECENTRALIZED RESPONSES TO CLIMATE CHANGE: ATMOSPHERIC, ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL SCIENCE PERSPECTIVES

Prof. Kip Viscusi (Vanderbilt University Law School) & Prof. Joni Hersch (Vanderbilt University School of Law), Allocating Responsibility for the Failure of Global Warming Policies With commentary by Dean Richard Revesz (New York University School of Law)

Prof. Myles Allen (Department of Physics, University of Oxford) With commentary by Prof. Robert Giegengack (Department of Earth and Environmental Studies, University of Pennsylvania)

Prof. Jody Freeman (Harvard Law School) & Prof. J.R. DeShazo (Political Science Department, UCLA), Subnational Regulation With commentary by Prof. Barton Thompson (Stanford Law School)

ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSION

David Buente, Esq. (Partner, Sidley Austin LLP) Mindy Lubber, Esq. (President, CERES) (invited) Jeff Smith, Esq. (Partner, Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP) Representative from the Office of the New York Attorney General (invited); moderated by William Thomas, Esq. (Partner, Clifford, Chance LLP).

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 9am – 2:30pm

CLIMATE CHANGE: COMMON LAW DUTIES AND DAMAGES
Prof. James Salzman (Duke University School of Law) & Prof. David Hunter (American University, Washington College of Law), Negligence in the Air: The Duty of Care in Climate Change Liability With commentary by Prof. Howard Chang (University of Pennsylvania Law School)

Prof. Cass Sunstein (University of Chicago Law School) & Wayne Hsiung (Northwestern University School of Law), Climate Change and Animals With commentary by Prof. Jason Johnston (University of Pennsylvania Law School)

RESPONDING TO AND INSURING AGAINST CATASTROPHIC CLIMATE CHANGE

Dr. Alan Carlin (United States Environmental Protection Agency), Global Climate Control: Is There a Better Strategy Than Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions? With commentary by Prof. Charles Kolstad (Donald Bren School of Environmental Science and Management, University of California, Santa Barbara)

Prof. Howard Kunreuther (The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania) & Prof. Erwann Michel-Kerjan (The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania), Climate Change and the Insurability of Catastrophic Risks With commentary by Prof. Michael Faure (University of Maastricht)

CLOSING COMMENTARY

Prof. Roger Pielke, Jr. (University of Colorado — Boulder) Prof. Dr. Reimund Schwarze (German Institute for Economic Research (DIW Berlin), European University Viadrina at Frankfurt/Oder) Prof. Hilary Sigman (Rutgers University); Prof. Jonathan Baert Wiener (Duke University)

Registration includes admission to all Symposium programs, continental breakfasts and lunches on both Thursday and Friday, and a wine and cheese reception on Thursday evening. A complete Symposium schedule including a registration link (at the bottom) is available at http://www.pennumbra.com/symposia/.

The direct link to the registration form is http://www.pennumbra.com/symposia/register.php