Global Environmental Law and Governance Mixer: Career and Partnership Opportunities 

On 4 May 2018, SCELG hosted a networking event on ‘Careers and Partnership Opportunities’ as part of the 2018 Festival of Environmental Law and Governance. The event aimed at providing students from our undergraduate, Masters and PhD programmes with an opportunity to meet alumni from a broad range of professional backgrounds, including international institutions, non-governmental organizations and independent consultancies, and academia. For each one of these three broad backgrounds, there was a panel of four alumni participants that now work at the:

• Alden Advisers
• European Investment Bank
• Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
• Greenpeace
• International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED)
• Milieu Ltd
• World Bank
• As well as alumni currently pursuing a PhD at our University and who have already undertaken internships with external organisations, including the IIED and the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea.

The event served as a platform for participants to share information on their current projects in environmental law and governance at the international, EU and national levels, and explore areas of common interest as well as ideas for future collaborations. In addition, participants, discussed challenges and lessons learned in their transition from completing their postgraduate studies to entering their professional lives.

Below are some key issues discussed during the event:

• Networking: Regardless of your professional background, it is vital to build a network through which you can exchange ideas and experiences, keeping in touch with what is being developed within and outside your field of expertise. A wide and solid web of professional contacts can provide not only the knowledge input required to solve a complex problem, but it can also open new career pathways.
• Interdisciplinarity:  Environmental issues are inherently interdisciplinary and require inputs from professionals of different fields of expertise, including science, technology and social sciences. In this scenario, the daily challenge is to overcome biases, to bridge gaps across disciplines, and to find a common language to establish a fruitful dialogue.

We welcome feedback on how we can best keep in touch and cultivate ties among alumni, with a view to exploring synergies and opportunities for working together. Please contact scelg@strath.ac.uk.

Programme