Student Opportunities

Print

Environmental Law Society and the Journal of Environmental Law & Policy
Environmental Law Society and the Journal of Environmental Law and Policy, student-run organizations that focus on environmental issues, give UCLA School of Law's students an opportunity to work on environmental issues outside the school's curriculum.

The Environmental Law Society is open to all interested students and seeks to make available to UCLA Law students information about environmentally related issues and activities. The Society arranges speaking events to facilitate open discussion of important and often controversial issues, coordinates UCLA participation in inter-school environmental moot court and negotiations competitions, and organizes environmentally-focused activities for students.

The UCLA Journal of Environmental Law and Policy, one of the country's top environmental law journals, has a staff of more than 50 students. The Journal publishes twice a year and generally accepts articles from professors, practitioners, and others in various environmentally related fields, as well as UCLA student-written comments and book reviews.

Externships
In the fourth or fifth semester at UCLA Law, students may choose to participate in the externship program to gain valuable real-world experience. Environmental law externships offered include the California Attorney General's office (in the Environment or Natural Resources Sections), the Natural Resources Defense Council, and the Earthjustice Legal Defense Fund. Students spend an entire semester working for the agency or organization and receive full law school credit. This is a phenomenal way to work with practicing environmental lawyers, develop skills and gain insight into future job opportunities.

Summer Funding for Law Student Work in Environmental Law
The Environmental Law Center has made it possible for many students to perform legal work outside the law school relating to the environment. In the summer of 2004, the Frankel Program, together with the Emmett Family Fund for Environmental Law, funded students to work for Environmental Defense, the California Coastkeepers Alliance, and Communities for a Better Environment. In the summer of 2003, the Frankel Program provided funding for UCLA School of Law students to work at the Santa Monica BayKeeper, Communities for a Better Environment, and Lawyers for Clean Water. And in the summer of 2004, the programs funded students to work for Environmental Defense, the California Coastkeepers Alliance, and Communities for a Better Environment. The programs anticipate funding two or three students in summer 2005 as well to do summer work in environmental law.