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ADB Publishes Training Guide for Environmental Law Students in Asia and Pacific

MANILA, PHILIPPINES (20 March 2002) - A much-needed training guide for environmental law students and government officials in Asia and the Pacific has been published by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

This is the "first comprehensive environmental law book based primarily on materials from the region" says Rolf Zelius, Deputy Director General of the ADB Regional and Sustainable Development Department, who oversaw publication of "Capacity Building for Environmental Law in the Asian and Pacific Region: Approaches and Resources."

The book fills an important gap in a region where environmental degradation is threatening quality of life and sustainable growth. This book is an outgrowth of materials first used as part of two training courses conducted at the Asia-Pacific Centre for Environmental Law (APCEL) at the National University of Singapore for 63 regional law professors from 15 regional countries.

Edited by three law professors, the pioneering book is a tool to address environmental problems and develop laws to support sustainable development. It has been produced through a joint effort of ADB, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), APCEL, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and many others in answer to a call at the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio for better training in environmental and developmental law.

The book culls regional expertise in environmental law, particularly from universities, governments, the private sector, and nongovernment organizations (NGOs). It establishes sustainable development as the basis for environmental law and emphasizes social justice and equity. It advocates that environmental law incorporate social, cultural, and economic dimensions as well as the physical environment.

The editors are Donna G. Craig, Associate Professor of the Centre for Environmental Law Macquarie University in Australia; Nicholas A. Robinson, Professor of Law and Co-Director of the Center for Environment Legal Studies at Pace University School of Law in New York; and Koh Kheng-Lian, Professor of the Faculty of Law and Director of APCEL at the National University of Singapore.

The book resulted from a $600,000 ADB technical assistance grant to IUCN (for training courses advocated by Dr. Parvez Hassan). It was also supported by total contributions which more than matched the ADB grant from the National University of Singapore, UN University, UN Institute for Training and Research, and over 200 individuals.

After the courses were completed at APCEL, materials developed for the courses were revised by Professors Craig, Robiinson, and Koh. The present two volumes are a result of this effort. The book will soon be launched at the Environmental Law Institute in Washington and by APCEL in Singapore.

ADB General Counsel Gerald Sumida notes in the book's Foreword its potential to "contribute significantly to the achievement of sustainable development, protection of the environment, and reduction of poverty."

UNEP's Mr. Lal Kurukulasuriya indicates that "UNEP will use this new publication extensively in its environmental law capacity building activities targeting university teachers and students, as well as other stakeholders such as civil society groups, the private sector and the media."

"This book is significant not only as an environmental law resource to be used by students, government officials and others throughout the region but also as an example of how diverse organizations and individuals can band together to achieve our common goal of helping everyone to a healthy and productive life in harmony with nature," observes John Boyd, ADB's Principal Sector Specialist (Sustainable Development) who, along with ADB's Dr. Jyrki Wartiovaara and IUCN's Dr. Francoise Burhenne-Guilmin, coordinated implementation of the technical assistance resulting in this book.

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