Climate Justice Lab #2
THE ROLE OF INTERNATIONAL COURTS IN A CLIMATE-CHANGED WORLD
The Climate Justice Lab returns for its second edition, building on the success of the 2024–25 cohort hosted by the Joachim Herz Doctoral School of Law at Leuphana University Lüneburg. This interdisciplinary research and collaboration initiative gathers early-career scholars, legal practitioners, and policy researchers to interrogate the evolving relationship between climate justice, legal systems, and institutional transformation.
The Climate Justice Lab offers an expert-guided, peer-supported workshop series where participants collaboratively develop academic papers. It is designed to complement participants’ climate justice research agendas, offering a space to refine working papers, including those stemming from dissertation research, receive targeted feedback, and build interdisciplinary insights on climate justice jurisprudence. Participants will benefit from:
Research development: structured feedback on papers, including those stemming from dissertation research, from peers and senior experts.
Publication opportunity: the chance to publish their contributions in a dedicated SSRN working paper series (optional and subject to editorial capacity).
Policy impact: specialized training on policy brief writing and strategies to translate academic research into actionable public knowledge.
Networking and collaboration: access to an international network of scholars and practitioners working on climate justice.
Long-term engagement: opportunities to stay connected through future Lab activities, including the third edition to be launched in 2026.
In this edition, the Lab turns its focus to a pressing and timely question: What role do courts play in shaping our legal and political realities in the face of the climate crisis?
Courts around the world are increasingly confronted with questions of climate justice, from national constitutional courts to regional human rights bodies and international tribunals. With landmark rulings and advisory opinions already emerging – such as those from the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR), and national supreme courts – the Lab asks:
How can courts shape climate justice futures?
Participants will critically engage with recent jurisprudence, identify pathways for legal and political implementation, and co-develop innovative, justice-oriented frameworks for institutional accountability in the Anthropocene.
14:00 – 14:05 Welcome & Introduction
Chad Osorio (Wageningen University & Research) & Stephanie de Sousa Vieira (Leuphana University Lüneburg)
14:05 – 14:30 Key Input Talk I
Professor Dr. Louis Kotzé (Wageningen University & Research)
14:30 – 14:55 Key Input Talk II
Verena Kahl (University of Hamburg)
14:55 – 15:30 Round of Introductions
Each participant briefly introduces themselves (research focus, interests, expectations); 2-3 min each
15:30 – 15:40 Orientation on Lab Format & Timeline
Chad Oosorio & Stephanie de Sousa Vieira
- 15:40 – 16:00 Q&A and Closing
09:15 – 09:20 Welcome & Introduction
Chad Osorio & Stephanie de Sousa Vieira
09:20 – 10:00 Expert Talk and Q&A
Professor Dr. Christina Eckes (University of Amsterdam)
10:00 – 10:15 Break
Coffee / Refreshments
10:15 – 12:45 Elevator Pitches
Each participant: 5 min presentation + 5 min discussion; includes 2 breaks (10 min each)
12:45 – 14:00 Lunch Break
Wageningen Mensa
14:00 – 15:00 Small group discussions
Thematic clusters, 3 persons per group + 1 expert/senior (Louis, Phillip, Matthias or the invited Prof.)
15:00 – 15:15 Break
Coffee / Refreshments
15:15 – 15:45 Joint group discussion
Led by Chad Osorio & Stephanie de Sousa Vieira
- 15:45 – 16:00 Closure & Wrap-Up
12 March 2026
- 09:00 – 10:30 Expert Talk
- 10:30 – 11:00 Break
- 11:00 – 12:30 3 Presentations (30 mins per person –> 10 mins presentation + 20 mins discussion)
- 12:30 – 13:30 Lunch Break
- 13:30 – 15:00 3 Presentations
- 15:00 – 15:30 Break
- 15:30 – 17:00 3 Presentations
13 March 2026
- 10:00 – 11:30 3 Presentations
- 11:30 – 12:00 Group Discussion / Closure Internal Event
- 12:00 – 13:00 Lunch Break
- 13:00 – 15:30 Public Event / Outcome Presentation
- 15:30 – 15:45 Closure
Chad Osorio
Wageningen University & Research (link)
Organiser and participant of the first edition of the Climate Justice Lab.
Contact: chad.osorio@wur.nl
Stephanie de Sousa Vieira
Leuphana University Lüneburg (link)
Organiser and participant of the first edition of the Climate Justice Lab.
Contact: stephanie.sousa_vieira@leuphana.de
Lila Emile García
Leuphana University Lüneburg, LIAS (link)
Paulina Rundel
University of Vienna (link)
Conrado Maximanuel Cornelius
National University of Singapore (link)
Sofia Tumaini
Africa Adaptation Initiative (link)
Nidhi Ananda Hanji
University of Amsterdam (LinkedIn)
Iryna Ponedelnik
Alliance "Green Belarus" (link)
Paula Andrea Nieto Hernandez
Erasmus University Rotterdam (link)
Roberta Amoriello
Business and Human Rights Expert (LinkedIn)
Mathilde Cohen
Tilburg University (link)
Rebecca Militz
Goethe University Frankfurt (link)
Anaëlle Bueno Patin
Tilburg University (link)