New York International Law Review 2024 Symposium

Rebecca Bratspies

An internationally recognized expert on environmental law, Professor Rebecca Bratspies has written scores of law review articles, op-eds, and other publications. Her most recent book is Environmental Justice: Law Policy and Regulation. She serves as an appointed member of New York City’s Environmental Justice Advisory Panel, and of EPA’s Children’s Health Protection Advisory Committee. She is a member-scholar with the Center for Progressive Reform, a core member of the Global Network for the Study of Human Rights and the Environment, and an editorial board member of the International Journal of Law in Context. She is a past member of the ABA Standing Committee on Environmental Law, past president of the AALS Section on the Environment, and a former advisor to the Consultative Group on Agricultural Research. Her environmentally-themed comic books Mayah’s Lot and Bina’s Plant brings environmental literacy to a new generation of environmental leaders.

Christopher Dekki 

Christopher Dekki is a dedicated global policy advocate and strategist with 10 years of experience with various United Nations entities on sustainable development, climate change and economic and social affairs. Mr. Dekki engages with a wide multi-stakeholder base, and shapes intergovernmental spaces at international, regional and local levels. Before joining the Environmental Defense Fund as the Manager of the Global Climate Cooperation, Mr. Dekki was the Director of Global Advocacy and Engagement at the SLOCAT Partnership on Sustainable, Low Carbon Transport, playing an official role as focal point for transport sector engagement in the UNFCCC. While in that role, Mr. Dekki was seconded to the UNFCCC COP28 Presidency in the UAE to oversee all matters related to transport policy and programming for the most recent UN Climate Change Conference in Dubai. Finally, Mr. Dekki is an adjunct professor of political science at St. Joseph's University in Brooklyn and CUNY Baruch.

Paolo Galizzi 

Paolo Galizzi is Clinical Professor of Law and Founder of the Sustainable Development Legal Initiative (SDLI) and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) program at the Leitner Center for International Law and Justice at Fordham Law School. He joined Fordham from Imperial College, University of London, and previously held academic positions at Universities of Nottingham, Verona, and Milan. At the Leitner Center, Professor Galizzi directs the international development clinic, as well as a new clinic on corporate social responsibility that he began in 2012. Professor Galizzi’s research interests lie in international environmental law, human rights and the law of sustainable development, and he has published extensively in all these areas.  He has also directed numerous legal research and capacity building projects in partnership with diverse public and private stakeholders in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Ulysses Smith

Ulysses Smith has an impressive track record at the intersection of sustainability, governance, rule of law, anti-corruption and human rights. His experience includes advising major multinationals, not-for profit organizations, governments and multilateral institutions on a range of sustainability and governance issues in more than 20 countries on six continents. In 2016, Mr. Smith was honored by the UN Global Compact as one of ten Global Sustainable Development Goals Pioneers for his work on SDG 16. He is currently a member of the UN Global Compact’s Expert Network, focused on sustainability and governance, and is also the former chair of New York City Bar Association’s United Nations Committee as well as the founder and chair of the New York City Bar Association’s Task Force on Good Governance in the Secretary-General Selection.

Dr. Vivek Bhatt

Dr. Vivek Bhatt holds a PhD in Law from the University of Edinburgh, an MSc in Political Theory (with Distinction) from the London School of Economics, and an LLM in International Law from the University of Sydney. Mr. Bhatt’s primary research interests are in international human rights law, migration, counterterrorism, and violent conflict, and his research in these areas draws heavily upon poststructuralist, postcolonial, and TWAIL perspectives. Mr. Bhatt has published his work in leading international journals including the Journal of Human Rights Practice and in edited volumes published by Oxford University Press and Hart. He is a Contributing Editor for Opinio Juris, the world's most widely read international law blog, and a Research Fellow at the Netherlands Institute of Human Rights (SIM), Utrecht University. 

Malcolm Dalesa

Malcolm Dalesa is an environmental and disaster recovery specialist with over 10 years of experience in environmental health work. He has spent the last 7 years working on climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction in the Pacific, including being involved and overseeing the development of Vanuatu's national climate change and Disaster Risk Reduction policy. Mr. Dalesa specializes in waste management, pollution control, food safety, environmental impact and risk assessment, climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction. 

Dr. Maria Antonia Tigre

Dr. Maria Antonia Tigre is a leading expert in the field of climate change law and climate litigation. She co-heads the Sabin Center and the Global Network for Human Rights and the Environment (GNHRE)'s project on Climate Litigation in the Global South. Previously, Dr. Maria Antonia served as Senior Attorney at the Environment Program of the Cyrus R. Vance Center for International Justice where she provided pro bono legal services to NGOs worldwide, focusing on issues related to protected areas and the intersection of human rights and the environment. As a member of the IUCN World Commission on Environmental Law, Dr. Tigre actively contributes to developing and advancing environmental legal frameworks. She has authored numerous publications on regional and international environmental law, with a specific focus on environmental rights, the evolution of international environmental law, and climate litigation. 

Dr. Catherine Tinker

Dr. Catherine Tinker has published widely in her field of expertise in international environmental law, sustainable development, and international law and organizations. She is the founder and president of the Tinker Institute on International Law and Organizations, an NGO accredited to ECOSOC at the United Nations, and regularly participates in summits, preparatory committees and working groups on sustainable development and international law at the UN. Dr. Tinker serves on the IUCN's World Council on Environmental Law (WCEL), based in Switzerland, as an expert. She has received foundation grants throughout her career for her work as a researcher and teacher, and was honored with the 2016 National Conservation Award from the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution in recognition of her lifetime contributions to environmental education and international environmental advocacy.

Kathleen Schmid

Before completing her law degree at New York University, Kathleen Schmid was the legislative policy analyst of the New York City Council Committees on Waterfronts and on Transportation. After graduating from law school, she clerked for U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael H. Dolinger in the Southern District of New York. Kathleen also served as the Environmental Health, and Safety Manager for WeRecycle!, an electronics recycling company, and in 2003 founded the Newtown Creek Alliance, which she continued to direct until 2012. Now at the NYC Mayor’s Office, Ms. Schmid coordinates with multiple City agencies, working towards transitioning the City to renewable energy and decarbonizing City assets and operations.