Pace I Haub Environmental Law

09/03/2026

The newly published Yellowstone issue of the American Bar Association’s Natural Resources & Environment features scholarship from members of the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University community.

Professor Margot Pollans authored “From Conservation Agency to Environmental Agency: USDA at Yellowstone,” which explores the USDA’s influence on private land practices beyond the park’s borders.

Professor Jason Czarnezki co-authored “Managing the Visitor Experience in Yellowstone, Grand Teton, and Beyond,” examining the legal tools available to address record visitation at national parks.

Colin Schmitt, a student in the joint JD/MEM program at Haub Law and the Yale School of the Environment, co-authored “A Framework for State-Led Grizzly Bear Management,” which considers how the Endangered Species Act can incentivize conservation and support state-led wildlife management.

Read the full Yellowstone issue ➡️ https://www.americanbar.org/groups/environment_energy_resources/resources/natural-resources-environment/2026-summer/

09/02/2026

Professor Katrina Kuh, Haub Distinguished Professor of Environmental Law, was quoted in the recent Law360 article, “High Court Case Looms Over State Climate Superfund Fights,” examining the evolving legal landscape surrounding state climate change Superfund laws and climate litigation.

The article looks at a recent federal court decision striking down New York’s Climate Change Superfund Act and what the U.S. Supreme Court’s upcoming consideration of Suncor Energy v. Boulder County could mean for state efforts to address climate-related harms.

Professor Kuh discussed the significant role that federal preemption and displacement have played in climate litigation, and the potential implications of the Supreme Court’s consideration of Suncor for state climate laws.

“The outcome, the reasoning, and the holding there could very much have salience for the state climate Superfund laws,” Professor Kuh told Law360.

Read more ➡️ https://www.law360.com/articles/2520194/high-court-case-looms-over-state-climate-superfund-fights

09/01/2026

Registration is open for The Jeffrey G. Miller National Environmental Law Moot Court Competition (NELMCC)!

Each year, law students from across the country come together at Haub Law to sharpen their advocacy skills while tackling complex and timely issues in environmental law.

Recognized as the nation’s largest interschool moot court competition focused on environmental law, NELMCC offers students the opportunity to brief and argue cutting-edge environmental legal issues before attorneys, judges, and environmental law professionals.

📅 February 17–20, 2027
📍 Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University | White Plains, NY

Register and learn more ➡️ https://nelmcc.pace.edu

08/28/2026

Our final Eco Journey comes from Professor Achinthi Vithanage, Executive Director of the Environmental Law Program, and takes us to one of her favorite places in Sydney: South Head, within Sydney Harbour National Park 🇦🇺.

Overlooking the entrance to Sydney Harbour from the Pacific Ocean, South Head offers sweeping views of the harbour, sandstone cliffs, rocky foreshores, quiet beaches, and bushland. Sydney Harbour National Park also protects five historic harbour islands and their native wildlife, and the area around the harbour was occupied by the Eora and Daruk Aboriginal Nations prior to colonial arrival.

For Professor Vithanage, the journey begins with a ferry ride from Circular Quay, passing the Harbour Bridge and Opera House before arriving at Watsons Bay. From there, she follows the South Head Heritage Trail to Hornby Lighthouse, a historic beacon built in 1858 following the Dunbar shipwreck at the foot of South Head.

Along the way are magnificent ocean cliffs, stunning harbour views, and, during the winter months Down Under, even the chance to spot humpback whales on their annual migration.

For Professor Vithanage, South Head is both a place of peace and reflection and a reminder of how big and blue this world is, and how important it is to protect it.

08/27/2026

Our next Eco Journey comes from Professor Michael Hamersky, Executive Director of the Pace Energy and Climate Center and Adjunct Professor at Haub Law, and takes us to White Sands National Park in New Mexico.

Known for its sweeping dunes of white gypsum sand, White Sands is a striking landscape, and for Professor Hamersky, it also represents a meaningful connection between his time as an LLM student and his work in environmental law today.

Professor Hamersky visited White Sands just a few months after researching and reporting on the park’s history and legal structure in his Natural Resources Law course. At the time, he never imagined that he would one day return to Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University to teach that very same course.

And, of course, there was another highlight: his dog, Prosciutto, had a blast exploring the mountains of white sand. 🐾

For Professor Hamersky, the experience helped shape his love of our National Parks and serves as a full-circle reminder of how the places we study can continue to influence our work long after the classroom.

08/26/2026

Our next Eco Journey comes from Katrina Kuh, Haub Distinguished Professor of Environmental Law, and takes us to Everglades National Park.

Spanning a vast network of wetlands in South Florida, Everglades National Park is home to an extraordinary range of wildlife and has long been at the center of important questions involving conservation, water management, and environmental policy.
For Professor Kuh, visiting the Everglades feels like stepping back in time. The park’s birds and reptiles — “snakes, so many snakes!” — are so incredible that she felt she might spy a dinosaur.

Beyond its remarkable wildlife and landscape, Professor Kuh also reflected on the Everglades’ complicated history, interwoven with important environmental policy and legal decisions.

Follow along as we continue sharing Eco Journeys from members of our environmental law community during National Parks Week.

08/25/2026

In celebration of National Parks Week, we’re sharing Eco Journeys from members of the Pace I Haub Environmental Law Program community and highlighting the places that connect us to the landscapes, wildlife, and environmental values at the heart of our work.

Our first Eco Journey comes from Jack Hornickel, Staff Attorney with Haub Law’s Food and Farm Business Law Clinic, whose work focuses on issues including land use, conservation, farm succession, and land access.

This summer, Jack traveled to Estes Park, Colorado, to celebrate his parents’ 50th wedding anniversary and explore Rocky Mountain National Park. He hiked into the alpine zone, dipped his feet into mountain streams, and encountered some of the park’s wildlife — including a young moose and several herds of elk.

For Jack, the trip was also a reminder of what makes our national parks so special:
“National Parks are a national treasure because they curate a wilderness experience from the expansive beauty of the continent for all people of all backgrounds and abilities to enjoy.”

Follow along during National Parks Week as we share more Eco Journeys from our environmental law community.

08/24/2026

The Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University is pleased to welcome Professors Jim Salzman, Alyse Bertenthal, and Carlton Waterhouse, as Haub Visiting Scholars during the 2026–2027 academic year.

The Haub Visiting Scholars Program brings leading environmental law scholars and practitioners to Haub Law for residencies designed to foster scholarly exchange, intellectual collaboration, and engagement with students and faculty. This year’s Visiting Scholars bring significant expertise across environmental justice, climate law and policy, natural resources, environmental criminal enforcement, and other critical areas of environmental law.

Professor Carlton Waterhouse of Howard University School of Law will join Haub Law in Fall 2026, bringing expertise in environmental justice, climate policy, and reparations. His residency will include faculty and student programs and participation in New York City Climate Week events.

Professor James Salzman of UC Santa Barbara and University of California, Los Angeles - School of Law will complete a month-long residency in Fall 2026. During his visit, he will deliver the Lloyd K. Garrison Lecture on Environmental Law and contribute to Haub Law’s 50th anniversary programming.

Professor Alyse Bertenthal of Wake Forest University School of Law will join Haub Law in Spring 2027. Her interdisciplinary scholarship explores environmental law, criminal law and procedure, and environmental justice, including emerging questions surrounding environmental criminal enforcement.

Throughout the academic year, the Visiting Scholars will engage with students and faculty through lectures, workshops, scholarly collaboration, and special programs.

Learn more about the 2026–2027 Haub Visiting Scholars ➡️ https://www.pace.edu/news/elisabeth-haub-school-of-law-pace-university-welcomes-three-leading-environmental-scholars

08/20/2026

What can Denmark’s “pig election” tell us about the future of animal welfare and environmental policy in the United States?

Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University Professor David Cassuto recently spoke with Sentient Media about Denmark’s election, where concerns over animal welfare and clean water helped bring the impacts of intensive animal agriculture into the political conversation.

Professor Cassuto offers insight into the cultural and political differences that shape the U.S. approach to animal agriculture and considers whether similar concerns could motivate American voters.

Read more ➡️ https://sentientmedia.org/pig-election-rewrote-factory-farm-politics/

Could animal welfare and clean water motivate American voters?

08/19/2026

What does a summer at Riverkeeper look like?

Hear from Pace I Haub Environmental Law rising 2L, Nicole Freitas and her experience as a summer legal intern!