Faculty Accomplishments
Building on a long tradition of excellence, Stegner Center faculty continue to engage in today’s cutting-edge issues through legal education, publications, and service. Below are highlights from this year.
Tony Anghie
Recently published an article in the Europena Journal of International Law titled, Rethinking International Law: A TWAIL Retrospective, that briefly addresses some environmental issues.
Lingxi Chenyang
Presented “Comedy of the Agricultural Commons” at the Society of Environmental Law and Economics, Cambridge University, UK (June 2023).
Presented at the Natural Resources Law Teachers Workshop, S.J. Quinney College of Law, Utah (July 2023).
Presented at the UCLA-Colorado Summer Symposium, UC Boulder, Colorado (August 2023).
Jorge Contreras
Over the past year, Contreras has been involved in developing and expanding the Low Carbon Patent Pledge, an open platform for the contribution of patent assets to support sustainable and carbon-reducing technology, infrastructure, and services.
Brigham Daniels
Published Why Stop Grazing the Climate Commons?, 13 Mich. J. Envtl. & Admin. L.C. L. Rev. ___ (2023) (forthcoming).
After two rounds of peer review from environmental law professors around the country, Daniels’ article, Reconsidering NEPA, 96 INDIANA L.J. 865 (2021) (with Andrew Follett and James Salzman) was selected as one of the fifteen most important environmental law articles published within the last year.
Co-founded, along with Beth Parker, the College of Law’s Great Salt Lake Project. The project is a policy accelerator for developing legally sound and politically feasible policy options for conserving and shepherding water to the Great Salt Lake.
Tim Duane
Tim Duane gave lectures in Botswana, Zambia, and South Africa over the summer on climate change and water vulnerability, trophy hunting and wildlife conservation, and the incorporation of local communities into conservation decision-making. He also gave a public talk on “Climate Change and the Colorado River” at the Flagstaff Festival of Science at Lowell Observatory in September. Tim taught an intensive four-week, two-unit course on Wildlife & Biodiversity Law at SJQ this semester.
Leslie Francis
States of Health: Federalism and Bioethics by Leslie P. Francis and John G. Francis is in press at Oxford University Press and is expected out in the spring. It contains discussions of how states differ on public health questions and whether that’s ethically acceptable.
Robert Keiter
Appointed by Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland to the National Park System Advisory Board.
On sabbatical during fall semester to complete his eighth book tentatively entitled “Conserving the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem: The Enduring Quest to Preserve an Iconic Landscape,” to be published by the University of Chicago Press in late 2024.
Nancy McLaughlin
Nancy A. McLaughlin, Laws Governing Restrictions on Charitable Gifts: The Consequences of Codification, 70 UCLA L. Rev. Disc. 2 (2023).
Nancy A. McLaughlin, Keeping the Perpetual in Florida Conservation Easements, _ FIU L. Rev. _ (forthcoming 2023).
Presentations:
Nancy A. McLaughlin, Organizer of and Speaker at the annual Trying Times: Conservation Easements and Federal Tax Law Program 2023 , which had over 570 registrants from around the nation.
Nancy A. McLaughlin, Speaker on Conservation Easements, Who Guards the Guardians, at the 2023 Natural Resources Law Teachers Workshop.
Tom Mitchell
Presented his work in progress “Correlative Rights and Duties and Waste: Fundamental Jural Concepts for Governing the Commons” at the 5th Annual Natural Resources Law Teachers Workshop (Salt Lake City, Utah).
Beth Parker
Representing Tribes in Developing Tribal Lands, __ Found. Nat. Resources & Energy L.__ (forthcoming Nov. 2023).
Speaker: “Tribal Water Rights: Arizona v. Navajo Nation,” Indian Law Section of the Utah State Bar (July 19, 2023); “Tribal Water Rights in a Changing Landscape: Arizona v. Navajo Nation,” CLE International Water Law Institute’s 29th Annual Utah Water Law Conference: Adapting to Today’s Challenges, (Oct. 30, 2023).
Co-founded, along with Brigham Daniels, the College of Law’s Great Salt Lake Project. The project is a policy accelerator for developing legally sound and politically feasible policy options for conserving and shepherding water to the Great Salt Lake.
Jamie Pleune
Article, This Permit Reform Works. Why Aren’t Mining Projects Using It? 53 Envt’l L. Rep. 10463 (June 2023) (co-authored with Edward Boling).
Article, BLM’s Conservation Rule and Conservation as ‘Use’ ___ Envt’l L. Rep. ____ (forthcoming November 2023)
Authored an issue brief on permit reform published by the Roosevelt Institute. “Choosing Between Environmental Standards and a Rapid Transition to Renewable Energy Is a False Dilemma” (May 24, 2023). https://rooseveltinstitute.org/publications/choosing-between-environmental-standards-and-a-rapid-transition-to-renewable-energy-is-a-false-dilemma/
Written Testimony Submitted to the U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Natural Resources, Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, Hearing on “The Biden Administration’s Executive Overreach and its Impact on American Energy Independence” (May 11, 2023)
Co-authored opinion piece with Brig Daniels, New NEPA Regulations Are a Big Win for Utahns, The Nation and the Environment, Salt Lake Tribune (Aug. 7, 2023)
Authored Comments on Bureau of Land Management Proposed Rule, Conservation and Landscape Health, Submitted on Behalf of Stegner Faculty Members.
Launched the new Law & Policy Program Blog Posts from the Desk, which describes the work of the Law & Policy Program, offers commentary, explores current trends in environmental law, and occasionally offers guest posts from Stegner Faculty and other partners.
Presentations
Testified before the House Committee on Natural Resources, Subcomittee on Oversight and Investigations regarding permit reform proposals (May 11, 2023). Written testimony associated with the hearing is available here. is available here.
“Creating a Transparent Methodology for the Continuum of Conservation within the America the Beautiful Initiative” at the 2023 J.B. & Maurice C. Shapiro Environmental Law Symposium hosted at George Washington University (April 6, 2023) https://www.law.gwu.edu/2023-jb-maurice-c-shapiro-environmental-law-symposium
“Causes of Delay in the Permitting Process” at the Justice Centered Vision for Permit Reform hosted by the Roosevelt Institute (Mar. 21, 2023) A Justice-Centered Vision for Permitting Reform – Roosevelt Institute
Panel Moderator for “Meeting Demand in 2050: Preserving Environmental Protections with Expedited Permitting (April 27, 2023) at the ABA SEER 2023 Spring Conference.
Danya Rumore
Over the past year, Rumore has published a series of EDR Blog articles on how to make conflict productive. She also recently published an opinion piece on “To disagree better, we need to increase our conflict competence” in the Salt Lake Tribune in response to Utah Governor Cox’s Disagree Better Initiative.
Rumore, founder and co-director of the Gateway and Natural Amenity Region (GNAR) Initiative, was featured on a PBS Utah special on Digital Nomads and the Housing Dilemma.
John Ruple
Accepted a detail to the White House Council on Environmental Quality in 2022 as senior counsel. He is continuing to serve in this capacity so is on leave, but he remains on the College of Law faculty during his service at CEQ.
Jeff Schwartz
Jeff Schwartz, The Levers of Sustainability: The EU Directive on Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence in Comparison to US Law, 49 Podjetje in Delo (Company and Labour): A Journal for Commercial, Labour and Social Law 419 (2023).
Elizabeth Kronk Warner
Accepted a publication offer to publish Shared Stewardship, with is co-authored with Jesus Salazar, with the Ecology Law Quarterly.
Co-authored with Professor Uma Outka, SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy, 53 Environmental Law Institute 10124 (2023).
Presentations:
From Consultation to Consent: Beyond Box Checking, Environmental Distinguished Lecture at Florida State University College of Law, Tallahassee, FL (Oct. 12, 2022).
Tribal Treaty Rights Speaker Series: Environmental Justice and Effective Consultation in Indian country, presentation to federal employees (virtual, Sept. 28, 2022).
Member, Advisory Committee to the Center for Water Policy at the University of Wisconsin (May 2021 – Present)