On the 3rd and 4th December, 2011, in the context of COP17 negotiations in Durban, IDLO together with Warburton Attorneys (Johannesburg) will launch the first ever annual conference specifically focused on the legal and institutional aspects of climate change mitigation, adaptation and finance in the Global South.

The Conference on Climate Law and Governance in the Global South, co-sponsored by CDKN, will bring together country representatives, development practitioners, legal experts and other key stakeholders to discuss the most pressing issues facing developing country governments and citizens.

The Conference on Climate Law and Governance in the Global South seeks to:

• Catalyze legal thought on climate change and its implications for the development of laws and institutions for developing countries
• Promote an integrated approach to climate change law at international, regional, national, subnational and sectoral levels
• Facilitate collaboration between legal experts, policy-makers and stakeholders with a view to advancing climate policy
• Explore context specific governance challenges related to climate change priorities and capabilities
  Promote knowledge-sharing of best practices to empower policy-makers to improve legal and institutional frameworks for climate change policy

Conference Features include:

Distinguished Keynote Speakers for the Conference and Reception:

Justice Albie Sachs
Former Justice of the Constitutional Court of South Africa
Ms. Mary Robinson
Former President of Ireland
Mr. Kumi Naidoo
Executive Director of Greenpeace
Dr. Pavan Sukhdev
Study Leader, The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) Project
Mr. Ricardo Meléndez-Ortiz
Chief Executive Officer & co-Founder, International Centre for Trade & Sustainable Development
Prof. Marie-Claire Cordonier Segger
Manager, Environment & Sustainable Development Law Division, IDLO, & Senior Director, CISDL

International Expert Panelists:

Mr. Alex Simalabwi
Climate Change Focal Point, Global Water Partnership
Dr. Charlotte Streck
Director, ClimateFocus
Prof. Louis Kotze
Environmental Law Department, North-West University, South Africa
Prof. Michael Kidd
Environmental Law Department, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermartizburg
Dr. Neville Trotz
Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre
Ms. Michele Klein-Solomon *
UN Permanent Observer for the International Organisation for Migration
Pa Ousman Jarju *
Gambia Department of Water Resources and LDC Group
Ms. Dolores Barrientos *
Senior Program Officer, United Nations Environment Program
Mr. Carlos Fuller
Deputy Director, Caribbean Community Climate Change Center
Dr. Marie Parramon
IMBEWU Sustainability Legal Specialists (Pty) Ltd/Extraordinary Lecturer: North-West University, South Africa
Prof. Loretta Feris
Institute of Marine and Environmental Law, University of Cape Town, South Africa
Prof. Anel Du Plessis
Environmental Law Department, North-West University, South Africa
Ms. Cecilia Ntombela
Senior Legal Advisor, Gold Fields
Ms. Belynda Petrie
One World Sustainable Investments, Cape Town, South Africa
Ms. Sarah Mason-Case
Program Specialist, IDLO & Associate Fellow, CISDL
Mr Sebastien Jodoin
Lead Counsel, CISDL
Ms. Cecilia Babb *
Executive Coordinator, Caribbean Policy Development Centre
Mr. Thierno Bal Seck *
Manager of Rural Development and Desertification, Enda Énergie, Environnement, Développement
Mr. Dang Dinh Bach *
Vice-Director, Law and Policy of Sustainable Development Research Center
Prof. Valentina Duran Medina *
Curso Clinico de Derecho Ambiental y Resolucion de Conflictos, Faculdad de Derecho, University of Chile
Ms. Yinka Agidee
Legal Practitioner, The Rock and Partners, Lagos, Nigeria
Prof. Willemien du Plessis
Environmental Law Department, North- West University, South Africa
Prof. E Couzens
Environmental Law Department, University of Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa
Prof. Markus Gehring
University of Ottawa, Cambridge University, & Lead Counsel, CISDL

Potential Interactive Workshops
CDKN, IDLO. IMBEWU, FAO, IFAD, WRI, Acclimatise, ClimateFocus, Baker & McKenzie, CISDL, ICTSD, Cambridge University, Clifford Chance, Zizzo Allan Climate Law LLP, North-West University

A draft agenda is available here

To register for this event, please click here

For more information, please contact:

Marie-Claire Cordonier Segger
Environment & Sustainable Development Programs
International Development Law Organization
Viale Vaticano, 106
00165 Rome, Italy
Tel: +39 06 4040 3200
Fax: +39 06 4040 3232
Email: mcordonier@idlo.int