Conference Programme
Please note that the below is a preliminary conference program and subject to change. Information correct as at 9 March 2020.
“The Tide is High, the Time is Nigh”
| 8:30 | Conference Registrations & Name Badge Collection Ocean Verandah |
| 9:00 – 9:40 |
Welcome and Opening Remarks Welcome remarks Mr Chunghwan Choi The Hon Justice Brian Preston FRSN SC Dr Gordon Hughes AM Ms Laurel Vaurasi Opening address Fiji’s New Climate Change Act The Hon Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum MP |
| 9:40 – 11:10 | SESSION 1 – Promoting Action on Climate Change Ballroom 1 & 5 Chair: Dr Gordon Hughes AM Speakers: 1. Managing the rise of youth movements agitating for legal change Ms Annika Reynolds 2. In pursuit of climate justice: Commencing the process of seeking an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice on climate change and human rights Mr Solomon Yeo 3. Comics and climate change law Dr Leonie Kelleher |
| 11:10 – 11:30 | Morning Refreshments & Networking Ocean Verandah |
| 11:30 – 13:00 | SESSION 2 – Consequences of Climate Change Ballroom 1 & 5 Chair: Ms Pauline Wright President | Law Council of Australia (AUSTRALIA) Speakers: 1. Given current policies are steering us toward a ‘3 degree world’, what kinds of hazards, impacts, risks and disruptions should we expect, and how might and should communities, business and governments respond? Professor Brendan Mackey 2. Climate change and its impact on constitutional and human rights law Mr Shyam Divan 3. ‘The right to environment’ Professor Shaista Shameem 4. Impacts of climate change on culture particularly language in the Torres Strait Islands Mrs Judith Preston 5. The challenge for environmental law organisations – making indigenous environmental issues matter Mr David Morris Ms Fleur Ramsay |
| 13:00 – 14:00 | Lunch & Networking Lagoon Restaurant |
| 14:00 – 15:10 | SESSION 3 – Adaptation to Climate Change Ballroom 1 & 5 Chair: Ms Felicity Rourke Speakers: 1. Legal strategies to expand community based governance in climate change adaptation: Lessons from the Pacific Islands Professor Donna Craig 2. Climate justice and disaster law – A focus on the Pacific Professor Rosemary Lyster 3. Time and Tide Wait For No Man: A critical analysis of the success of the United Nation’s Global Compact on Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration for climate-change induced migrants Ms Samantha Thorogood |
| 15:10 – 15:30 | Afternoon Refreshments & Networking Ocean Verandah |
| 15:30 – 17:00 | SESSION 4 – The Role of the Judiciary Ballroom 1 & 5 Chair: The Hon Justice Nicola Pain Speakers: 1. The Environmental Rule of Law: ready access to Courts, specialist or otherwise The Hon Judge Laurie J Newhook 2. The duty of judges to protect future generations under the present rule of law, particularly with respect to green constitutions, and the remedies available The Hon Justice Michael D Wilson 3. The role of the judiciary in promoting the environmental rule of law and environmental justice The Hon Justice Ambeng Kandakasi 4. The Role of Judiciaries in advancing environmental justice including climate justice with special emphasis on Fiji’s Climate Change Bill, economic loss, corporate liability and the impact on civil litigation The Hon Justice Deepthi Amaratunga 5. Outcomes of the UNEP-ADB Pacific Judiciary Conference on Environment Mr Sefanaia Nawandra |
| Welcome Reception Poolside, Sofitel Fiji Resort & Spa |
| 9:00 – 10:30 | SESSION 5 – Ocean Governance, Protecting the Pacific Ocean Ballroom 1 & 5 Chair: Ms Maureen Peatman Speakers: 1. From marine protected areas to marine spatial planning: how legal tools are responding to complex ocean challenges Professor Erika Techera 2. Ecosystem-based marine spatial planning in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park: Achievements and challenges Professor Daud Hassan Md Ashraful Alam |
| 10:30 – 11:00 | Morning Refreshments & Networking Ocean Verandah |
| 11:00 – 12:30 | SESSION 6 – Protecting and Managing Marine Resources Ballroom 1 & 5 Chair: Ratu Jo Mesake Nacola Speakers: 1. Can’t see the (mangrove) forest for the trees: legal and policy recognition of mangrove and wetland ecosystem services in Australia Dr Justine Bell-James 2. Evaluation of the international, regional and domestic legal arrangements to protect seabirds in the Pacific region Dr Evan Hamman 3. Protecting the marine ecosystem, law of the sea and international marine environmental law Professor Rosemary Rayfuse 4. The importance of regional cooperation between Pacific Island Countries for efficient fisheries management Mr James Sloan |
| 12:30 – 13:30 | Lunch & Networking Lagoon Restaurant |
| 13:30 – 14:40 | SESSION 7 – International and National Climate Initiatives Ballroom 1 & 5 Chair: Mr Justin Dowd AM Speakers: 1. Climate financing Mr Martijn Wilder AM 2. Accessing carbon farming opportunities in the Asia-Pacific region: the role of the land sector in achieving net-zero emissions and environmental, social, cultural and economic co-benefits Mr Guy Dwyer Ms Sophie Whitehead 4. Accountability for Environment Harm – Is there Any? Mr Alan Webb |
| 14:40 – 15:00 | Afternoon Refreshments & Networking Ocean Verandah |
| 15:00 – 16:00 | SESSION 8 – Sustainable, Resilient, and Inclusive Development Ballroom 1 & 5 Chair: Ms Wati Seeto Speakers: 1. Sustainable, resilient and inclusive development. What does it mean to Fiji and how can we achieve it? Ms Kiji Vukikomoala 2. Environmental impact assessments and legal issues that arise Mr Nicholas Barnes 3. A case of place: The promise and potential of local environmental justice following Rocky Hill Professor Amanda Kennedy Dr Brad Jessup |
| 16:00 – 16:15 |
Closing Remarks Dr Georgina Lloyd Ms Pauline Wright The Hon Justice Brian Preston FRSN SC |