Project HighlightsFirst edition of the World Energy Justice Congress 2023 in Pau
The Energy Justice & Social Contract Chair is pleased to have hosted the 1st edition ofthe World Energy Justice Congress for a week long conference in June between the Pauand Anglet Campus, to explore the raison d’etre of energy justice.
The Congress saw collaborations with the Chair from the European Federation ofEnergy Law Associations (EFELA); the French Association for Energy Law (AFDEN);Palgrave Macmillan; The Journal of Energy law & Business & the MOVE project fromthe University of Pau.
Day 1- Opening Day
Day 1 of the Conference saw Professor Raphael Heffron and Professor Louis de Fontenelle, officially launchthe Energy Justice & Social Contract Chair at Presidential Building located at the University of Pau, PauCampus.
They emphasised that this Team is committed to build an international centre of excellence for research onenergy justice and a new social contract. They asserted that in order to transition to a low carbon economy,energy justice and the social contract are essential to this new reality.
The Chair was also pleased to have the Director of the Laboratory for Energy and Environmental Transitions(UMR TREE), CNRS (Professor Xavier Arnauld de Sartre); the President of the University of Pau & Pays del’Ardour (Laurent Bordes); the Regional Delegate of the CNRS New Aquitaine (Younis Hermès); and the VicePresident of the French Region Nouvelle Aquitaine (Gérard Blanchard) for the official launch of the project.Professor de Sartre emphasised the timeliness of the Chair in the context of the climate change emergency andthe importance of the concept of justice for all energy researchers. The Chair was also delighted to have aSpecial keynote delivered by Justice Mattias Guyomar, of the European Court of Human Rights on how theapex court is now seeing human rights vehicles before it to promote just energy outcomes.
Day 2- Practitioners Day
Day 2 of the Conference was held at the scenic Espace de l’Océan, located at the Chambre d’Amour, Anglet. The venue space was generously donatedfor use by Claude Olive, the Mayor of Anglet. The day was specifically geared towards practitioners and was co-organised with the EuropeanFederation of Energy Law Associations (EFELA).
Dr. Vicente Lopez-Ibor Mayor, the President of EFELA, opened the day and welcomed practitioners from France, Ireland, Luxembourg, Spain, Italy,Portugal and potential new EFELA entrants Serbia, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia , Estonia, Hungary, Cyprus, Finland and Malta.
Overall, the session saw agreement between the practitioners that energy justice means leaving no one behind, and that means training energy lawstudents to be interdisciplinary, then training lawyers to bring in energy justice arguments before the court and then training judges. There was alsothe resounding agreement that bringing in new entrants to EFELA is a massive opportunity to fast track the development of renewables, inclusive ofhydrogen. For this, a change in mindset is needed to not just abandon the centralized model of energy markets, but also to bring in a decentralizedsystem where energy communities participate. Practitioners agreed that conferences such as these are necessary to educate, and promote reform, inorder to bridge the link between Energy law and society.
Day 2 concluded by honouring Dr. Vicente Lopez-Ibor Mayor for his decades’ long work in promoting just outcomes in the energy sector and awardedthe World Energy Justice Practitioner of the Year 2023.
Day 3 & 4- Scientific Days
Justice as a driver for a common energy future
Day 3 and 4 of the Conference were the scientific daysand brought together energy law academics, socialscientists, engineers, architects, planners,geographers, social justice advocates and lawyers.This part of the scientific portion of the Conferencewas opened by the Father of Environmental Justice,the inspiring Dr. Robert Bullard, from the BullardCenter for Environmental and Climate Justice in theUSA. He showed attendees what 40 years of fightingthe good fight in social, climate and environmentaljustice looks like and the advances made in the area.
Attendees also heard from Dr. Rebekah Shirley, the second keynote speaker, and theDeputy Director for Africa, World Resources Institute, who challenged the conference toprovide solutions on why international finance should, but does not flow naturally to theuntapped African renewables market.
Both Dr. Bullard & Dr. Shirley were honoured by the project and international jury for theirwork in promoting just energy outcomes around the world and named World EnergyJustice Scholars of 2023.
Our very own Dr Mohammad Hazrati, was also honoured for his joint article on conceptualising restorative justicein the energy transition, which is cited by the United States President Joe Biden Administration’s Justice40Initiative and his award was the World Energy Justice 2023 Best Publication
Day 5-The role of Hydrogen in the Energy Transition
Day 5, of the Conference was devoted to the role of Hydrogen in the energy transition.Practitioners and academics Christophe Rigollet, Dr. Hélène Burlet, Myriam Merad, JamesKneebone, Prof Michael Frey and Bénédicte Laroze, explored the future of green hydrogen –electricity, agriculture and industry. The presenters concluded their discussions by highlighting theclimate emergency and the need for policy to step in and make a decision, with the collaboration ofexperts, and by bringing the public on board, on how to move with respect to hydrogen.
The conference concluded with a vote of thanks, from the Chair’s to the project administrativeteam (Alice, Stephanie & Laura) who organised the logistics of a week long conference acrossmultiple venues. Once again, we echo the sentiments of thanks expressed by the Chairs- From all ofus, thank you !