THE LAW OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Chiara Gentile, Maurizia De Bellis

Obiettivi formativi

The course aims at providing students with an overall understanding of the concept of sustainable development and its evolution in time. It examines the key legal instruments related to sustainable development across international, European, and national law—such as treaties, declarations, and EU regulations—while addressing its environmental, social, and economic dimensions. To fully grasp the meaning and the concrete relevance of sustainable development, the course delves into the relevant case law of domestic and international courts as well as initiatives of NGOs and other actors of the civil society.

Prerequisiti

Knowledge of Transnational Constitutional Law, Comparative Public Law, EU Law, Administrative Law

Risultati di apprendimento attesi

- Knowledge and understanding. By attending lectures and engaging in teaching activities, students will learn to navigate contemporary issues relating to sustainable development under international law, European law, and national law. - Ability to apply knowledge and understanding. Through the analysis of legal cases and practices by actors of the civil society, students will learn to identify the concrete implications underlying legal issues addressed during the course. - Autonomy of judgment. Thanks to the knowledge and concepts learned during the course, students will be able to form their own evaluations and judgments on course topics and to address practical challenges encountered in the analysis of the case law and practices. - Communication skills. Students will learn the technical legal terminology and how to formulate sound legal arguments. For this purpose, students will have the possibility to engage in presentations of legal cases to the rest of the class and actively contribute to the discussion of such cases. - Learning skills. Students will develop an eclectic approach to the subject through the different lenses of international, European and national law. They will learn how to autonomously apply acquired skills to problems beyond those discussed in class.

Contenuti Del Corso

The contents of the course are detailed in the following sections. They focus on sustainable development within the field of public law.

Testi Di Riferimento

Academic papers, book chapters, cases presented by students.

Metodologie Didattiche

Teaching methods will include lectures, case study discussions, presentations by students.

Modalità di verifica dell'apprendimento

The final exam consists of an oral examination. There will be a written mid-term exam, which counts as 33% of the final grade. Oral presentations during the course can be considered as part of the final evaluation, amounting to 33% of the final grade.

Criteri per l’assegnazione dell’elaborato finale

Students will be assessed on the basis of their knowledge of the subject and their ability to resolve practical problems, as well as their active participation in class.

Settimana 1

Part I – Introduction to the concept of sustainable development in international, European, and national law (1) Introduction to course, rules, methods of assessment (2) Concept of sustainable development; its origins and evolution before the ICJ

Settimana 2

(1) Sustainable development and international law: SDGs. (2) Sustainable development and international law: climate change. - Cases

Settimana 3

(1) Sustainable development in EU law. - Cases (2) The European Green Deal and its evolution.

Settimana 4

(1) Sustainable development and national constitutions. (2) Focus on the German and Italian legal orders- - Cases

Settimana 5

The Institutional Dimension (1) The methodology of Planning: Energy and climate (EU action; MS action). (2) Participation. - Cases

Settimana 6

Part II - Sustainable development and the environmental, economic and social dimensions Environmental and social dimensions (1) EU action: EU restoration law. (2) Just Transition. - Cases

Settimana 7

Economic dimension (1) Energy. - Cases (2) Circular Economy. - Cases

Settimana 8

Economic dimension (1) Sustainable finance. - Cases (2) Omnibus Packages. - Cases

Settimana 9

Economic dimension (1) Agriculture. - Cases (2) Artificial Intelligence. - Cases

Settimana 10

Part III – Access to Court in Environmental Matters (1) International regional level. - Cases (2) EU level. - Cases

Settimana 11

(1) Corporate litigation. - Cases (2) Sustainable development and civil society. - Cases

Settimana 12

(1) Most recent case law on sustainable development. - Cases (2) Sustainable development: concept, principle, or objective? (concluding lecture)