ADB Co-Organized the Second ASEAN Environmental Law Conference

Over 4,500 participants attended the three-day conference covering 15 sessions on the myriad of environmental and social challenges facing the ASEAN region. The conference brought together development partners, civil society organizations, judges, academia, lawyers, private sector and other interested stakeholders from 66 countries to discuss legal, policy and community-based actions to transform principles of environmental law into practice. The most attended sessions were on (i) defending the defenders, (ii) public interest environmental litigation, (iii) environmental crime-transboundary wildlife crime and (iv) compliance and enforcement of environmental laws. ADB Deputy General Counsel Damien Eastman made opening remarks on the judicial day of the conference focusing on judicial remedies in climate change and environmental cases. He noted the challenging role of judges in navigating fair, timely, and sustainable remedies within existing and sometime outdated legal systems. Additionally, ADB, UNEP and USAID Reducing Demand for Wildlife launched the concept for the Judicial Master Class series which will provide a unique platform to workshop the outcomes of seminal regional jurisprudence in small group settings using virtual platforms. After the conclusion of his opening remarks, Deputy General Counsel Damien Eastman had the pleasure of welcoming the first female justice of the Pakistan Supreme Court, Hon. Justice Ayesha Malik to deliver her keynote address.

Visit the conference page.