What do wolves in Yellowstone, Bay Area marshlands, and forests in Borneo have in common? They are all the subject of tugs of war between those who are trying new ways to save biodiversity and those who fear that those conservation programs will hurt them. In these cases, the norms that favor preserving and enhancing… Continue reading →
“Are Koalas Fungible? Biodiversity Offsetting and the Law,” recently published in NYU Environmental Law Journal, is the latest product of Professor David Takacs’s more than two-decade-old exploration of humankind’s efforts to protect the earth’s dwindling biodiversity. So far, his project has produced a book on the concept of biodiversity and numerous articles. This paper is the… Continue reading →
As it emerged from decades of legal apartheid, South Africa also embarked on an ambitious program of water-law reform. At its core were two ideas. The first was to treat an old legal concept—the public-trust doctrine—as a foundation for the emerging legal system. That meant treating water as a common resource, to be held by… Continue reading →
