How to avoid missteps of accelerated EIA and permitting? – Reflections on the proposal for the EU’s Critical Raw Material Act
By Ismo Pölönen, Professor of Environmental Law (Bioeconomy and Natural Resources Law) Photo by Saara Österberg. In March 2023 the EU Commission proposed a Critical Raw Material Act (CRMA). Since then, the proposal has moved from the EU parliamentary reading to trilogue negotiations between the EU Council, Parliament and Commission. The aim is to conclude […]
The impact-based regulatory strategy in environmental law: Hallmark of effectiveness or pitfall for legitimacy?
By Niko Soininen, Professor of Environmental Law and Water Law, Seita Romppanen, Docent, Senior Lecturer on International Environmental Law and Senior Research Scientist at Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE), Mika Nieminen, Principal Scientist at Natural Resources Institute Finland (LUKE) and Sampo Soimakallio, Head of Unit at Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE) Environmental law was created to protect […]
EU legislation for clean air at crossroads
By Yulia Yamineva, Docent in Climate Law & Policy (Adjunct Professor) and Delphine Misonne, Professor, Université Saint-Louis – Bruxelles Air pollution has been a long-standing problem in the EU. While it has decreased over the past few decades, not least due to the EU clean air legislation and actions by national and local authorities, poor […]
Policy Forum Series on unilateralism in EU trade policies
The Policy Forum Series ‘The unilateralisation of EU trade policies – asserting interests or deserting principles?’ took place throughout the autumn. The series was organised by Prof Harri Kalimo (The Center for Climate Change, Energy and Environmental Law (CCEEL), University of Eastern Finland and the Centre for Environment, Economy and Energy (C3E), Brussel School of […]
Impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on environment, climate change and green energy transition
By Kateryna Holzer, Senior Researcher and Ievgeniia Kopytsia, Postdoctoral Researcher The Russian invasion of Ukraine is an unjustified and unprovoked act of aggression against an independent and sovereign state, as well as a violation of existing norms of international law and principles of human coexistence (Resolution A/ES-11/L.1). The use of heavy artillery and ballistic missiles […]
The right to a healthy environment as an environmental grundnorm
By Rosemary Mwanza, PhD Candidate Introduction In the course of my doctoral research, I have often reflected on why the ideal embodied in human rights norms and the present reality always seem so far apart. In dealing specifically with the right to a healthy environment, I have felt that ascendant human rights norms may fail […]
Legal transformations in an era of globalization: the case of REDD+
By Eugenia Recio Piva, Postdoctoral Researcher in Climate Law and Policy (Author’s Note: This blog post is based on my recently defended article-based PhD titled Legal Transformations in an Era of Globalization: the case of REDD+) Forests are critical in ensuring the integrity of the world’s ecosystems and the wellbeing of humanity. Scientists say that […]
Kestävä rahoitus muuttaa sijoituspalveluyritysten sääntelyä: tarkastelussa uudistuva soveltuvuusarviointi
Dr. Mikko Rajavuori, Suomen Akatemian Tutkijatohtori ja Dr. Matti Turtiainen, Tutkimusjohtaja, Oikeustieteiden laitos. The blog post has also been published in English. Sijoituspalveluyritykset osana kestävän rahoituksen sääntelyä Kestävä rahoitus on valtavirtaistunut 2020-luvulle tultaessa. Ympäristön ja yhteiskunnan kannalta kestäviin kohteisiin sijoittavien rahastojen ja muiden sijoitustuotteiden kysyntä ja tarjonta ovat vahvassa kasvussa. Kestäviin kohteisiin sijoittamisesta kiinnostuneilla on […]
Sustainable finance and the changing regulation of investment firms: What role for the new suitability assessment criteria?
By Dr. Mikko Rajavuori, Academy of Finland Post-doctoral fellow and Dr. Matti Turtiainen, Head of UEF Law School. Sustainable finance has entered mainstream. Judged by the growing supply of funds and other investment products that pursue ‘sustainability’ or ‘environmental social and governance (ESG)’ goals, the financial markets are greening at a rapid pace. However, the proliferation […]
Opportunities for strengthening international action on ocean acidification through existing Multilateral Environmental Agreements
By Dr. Ellycia Harrould-Kolieb, Postdoctoral Researcher in Climate Law and Policy Ocean acidification was first recognised as an emergent threat to marine systems in 1999. Over the past two decades scientific understanding of the issue has grown exponentially and it is now well understood that changing ocean chemistry due to the absorption of anthropogenic carbon […]