2023 Symposium: Building a Greener Future Through Urban Sustainability

About the Program

Climate change has been, and will continue to be, one of the greatest global challenges we face. Cities hold a unique position in climate change. The impacts of climate change affect all areas of urban life, including infrastructure, city waterfronts, housing, and human health, and these impacts fall disproportionately on low-income communities and people of color. At the same time, urban areas are a major source of greenhouse gas emissions. Cities therefore play an integral role in fighting climate change – both as advocates and as targets of reform. It is imperative for cities to take the lead in finding equitable solutions to protect all of their communities and to prevent further damage to the rural and suburban environments that urban activities have negatively impacted.

The second event of the Fordham Urban Law Journal’s 50th year of publication provides a forum for this discussion at its 2023 Symposium, Building a Greener Future Through Urban Sustainability. Alongside scholars, government and agency appointees, technical experts, and advocates, the Symposium will explore a range of topics on urban climate adaptation and resilience, including flood prevention, electrification of the transportation and buildings sectors, efforts to equitably transition to clean energy, and the important environmental justice considerations central to all climate initiatives and policies.

Panel Topics

Agenda
9:00 – 9:30 a.m. | Check-in and Breakfast

9:30 – 9:45 a.m. | Welcome Remarks

Matthew Diller, Dean and Paul Fuller Professor of Law, Fordham University School of Law
Nestor Davidson, Albert A. Walsh Chair in Real Estate, Land Use, and Property Law; Faculty Director, Urban Law Center, Fordham University School of Law

9:45 – 11:00 a.m. | Panel 1: The Clean Energy Transition

Genevieve Cullen, President, Electric Drive Transportation Association
Fred Zalcman, Director, New York Offshore Wind Alliance
Rachel Spector, Senior Attorney, Earthjustice Northeast Regional Office
Kim Diamond, Adjunct Professor of Law, Fordham University School of Law
Moderator: Peter Angelica, Editor-in-Chief, Fordham Urban Law Journal, Fordham University School of Law 2023

11:00 – 11:10 a.m. | Break

11:10 a.m. – 12:25 p.m. | Panel 2: Green Buildings

Ben Furnas, Executive Director, The 2030 Project: A Cornell Climate Initiative
Hillary Aidun, Associate Attorney, Earthjustice Northeast Regional Office
Laura Popa, Deputy Commissioner of Sustainability, New York City Department of Buildings
Christopher Halfnight, Senior Director, Policy and Research, Urban Green Council
Moderator: Nestor Davidson, Albert A. Walsh Chair in Real Estate, Land Use, and Property Law; Faculty Director, Urban Law Center, Fordham University School of Law

12:25 – 1:10 p.m. | Lunch Break

1:10 – 1:50 p.m. | Keynote Address

Vicki Arroyo, Associate Administrator for Policy, United States Environmental Protection Agency

1:50 – 1:55 p.m. | Short Break

1:55 – 3:10 p.m. | Panel 3: Water, Flood Prevention, and Flood Mitigation

Rob Rogers, FAIA, Partner, Rogers Architects + Urban Designers
Sara Hughes, Associate Professor of Environmental Policy and Planning; Associate Director of the Cooperative Institute for Great Lakes Research, University of Michigan
Dan Tarlock, University Distinguished Professor Emeritus, Illinois Tech, Chicago-Kent College of Law
Joseph Seebode, Deputy District Engineer and Chief of Programs and Project Management, New York District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Moderator: Eric Schaaf, Adjunct Professor of Law, Fordham University School of Law

3:10 – 3:20 p.m. | Break

3:20 – 4:35 p.m. | Panel 4: Urban Climate Policy

Danielle Spiegel-Feld, Executive Director, Guarini Center on Environmental, Energy & Land Use Law, NYU School of Law
Amy Turner, Senior Fellow for the Cities Climate Law Initiative, Sabin Center for Climate Change Law, Columbia Law School
Dalindyebo Shabalala, Professor of Law, University of Dayton Law School; Director, Program In Law and Technology
Arielle King, Director of Programming, Black Girl Environmentalist
Moderator: Sheila Foster, Scott K. Ginsburg Professor of Urban Law and Policy; Professor of Public Policy, Georgetown University