About the Vermont Journal of Environmental Law

The Vermont Journal of Environmental Law was founded in 1996 with support from Vermont Law and Graduate School’s Environmental Law Center. The Journal is a student-run organization that publishes articles on topics in the environmental field quarterly. The Journal has adopted a broad view of the environmental field and is interested in environmental matters at the local, state, federal, and international levels. The Journal accepts submissions of varying lengths from academics, practitioners, students, and other writers throughout the year. Please see the Submissions Page for more information on how to submit articles to the Journal and the Journal’s selection process.

Mission Statement

The Vermont Journal of Environmental Law’s mission is to provide an accessible forum to discuss contemporary environmental legal issues. Accordingly, the Vermont Journal of Environmental Law publishes high quality articles authored by academics, practitioners, and students alike. In selecting its articles, the Vermont Journal of Environmental Law recognizes that environmental issues are inexorably linked with many other areas of law and seeks to encompass a broad range of viewpoints and attitudes. In addition to publishing quarterly issues, the Vermont Journal of Environmental Law hosts an annual symposium, reaches national audiences through its Top Ten Environmental Watch List, collaborates with other environmental law journals by participating in the Environmental Law Review Syndicate, and brings commentary on environmental legal issues to non-lawyers via its colloquial EcoPerspectives and The Beacon Blogs.

Vermont Law & Graduate School
Vermont Law Top 10 Environmental Watch List 2024

Top Ten Environmental Watchlist

In addition to publishing articles, the Journal partnered with the Environmental Law Center in 2010 to produce the Top Ten Environmental Watch List. The Watch List is both a retrospective and prospective list in that it includes the top environmental law issues of the current year and predicts how those issues may play out in the coming year. The ten issues are chosen by the Environmental Law Center faculty at Vermont Law and Graduate School based on the significance to the environment, the impact on the public well being, and whether key developments are expected in the coming year. Each faculty member then partners with a second-year staff editor to research and write an article.

Annual Symposium

With support from Vermont Law and Graduate School faculty, staff, and the Environmental Law Center, the Journal organizes an annual symposium on an environmental law and policy issue. Each symposium is an opportunity for nationally and internationally recognized experts to meet, debate, and exchange ideas. Each symposium is a unique opportunity for students, practitioners, and policy makers to discuss environmental law and policy with some of the field’s leading figures. In recent years, the symposium has qualified for CLE credits for Vermont and New Hampshire attorneys.

For More Information About the Journal

For more information or questions about the Vermont Journal of Environmental Law, please Contact Us.

Current VLGS students looking to apply as a Staff Editor on the Journal, please visit our Prospective Editor Page.

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