Fall 2019 Symposium
Bridging the Gap: Reconciling Agriculture with Environmentalism
Friday, October 25, 202019
Chase Community Center, Vermont Law School, South Royalton, VT
The Vermont Journal of Environmental Law is pleased to announce our Fall 2019 symposium being held on October 25, 2019. The event will be held virtually and in person from with registration beginning at 8:00am and panels from 9:00am to 5:00pm in the Chase Community Center.
It is a common belief that environmentalism and the agricultural industry are incompatible with one another. However, as human activity continues to degrade our planet, lawyers, regulators, and even farmers are beginning to explore productive and realistic ways for agriculture to become more sustainable. The Vermont Journal of Environmental Law 2019 Symposium will foster provocative discussions about adapting agricultural and environmental laws, regulations, policies, and practices to help reconcile the goals of the agricultural industry with environmental goals.
For more information, please don’t hesitate to Contact Us.
Free and open to the public and press. CLE credits available.
Schedule:
8:00am – Registration and Breakfast
8:30am – Introductory Remarks
9:00am – Clean Water and Vermont’s Dairy Industry
- Moderator: Jennifer Rushlow, Director of the Environmental Law Center, VLS
- Speakers: Laura Ginsburg, Section Chief of the Agricultural Division at the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food, and Markets, James Maroney, Former dairy farmer and organic farming activist, Jack Lazor, Creator and Founder of Butterworks Farm, Tom Berry, Agricultural, Environmental, and Energy Advisor to Senator Leahy
10:30am – Keynote Address
- Keynote Speaker: John Piotti, President and CEO of American Farmland Trust
11:45am – The Growing Cannabis Industry
- Moderator: Professor Laurie Beyranevand, Director for the Center for Agriculture and Food Systems, VLS
- Speakers: Tim Fair and Andrew Subin, Attorneys and Partners at Vermont Cannabis Solutions, Rye Matthews, Chief Technical Officer of Northeast Hemp Commodities, Rusty Rumley, The National Agricultural Law Center
12:45am – Lunch
- Featuring locally farmed products
1:45pm – Farms: Energy Consumers and Producers
- Moderator: Genevieve Byrne, Staff Attorney at the Institute for Energy & the Environment, VLS
- Speakers: Jimmy Daukas, Senior Program Officer at American Farmland Trust, Katherine Oaks, Energy Fellow for the Farm and Energy Initiative at the Institute for Energy and the Environment, Bill Jorgenson, Co-founder and Counselor of Vanguard Renewables, Catherine Keske, Professor of Environmental Management at the University of California, Merced
3:15pm – Break
3:30pm – Models for Change
- Moderator: Sophia Kruszewski, Clinic Director for the Center for Agriculture and Food Systems, VLS
- Speakers: Lee Miller, Lecturing Fellow of Law at the Duke Environmental Law and Policy Clinic, Steven Winnett, Regional TMDL Coordinator at the Environmental Protection Agency Region 1, Phillip Chavez, Managing Partner at Diamond ‘A’ Farms and Partner at Mohawk Valley Farms, Lisa McCrory, Consultant, teacher, activist, organic farmer, and co-owner of Earthwise Farm and Forest
4:45pm – Closing Remarks from VJEL
5:00pm – Reception in Yates Common Room