Surrey water researchers win Queen's Anniversary Prize...

12 December 2011

“The Queen's Anniversary Prize is the most prestigious honour open to a UK university. We're delighted to have won the prize again. It acknowledges that Surrey's research in crucial fields such as safe water and sanitation is second to none.” 
Professor Christopher Snowden, Vice-Chancellor

The University has been working towards the provision of safe water for over 30 years. It has amassed unique and priceless experiences and expertise, developing a reputation for excellence in research and practice among fellow academics, governments and disaster relief NGOs.

Dr Kaime awarded an Institute of Advanced Studies grant

16 November 2011

Dr Thoko Kaime was awarded a grant by the Institute of Advanced Studies to host an international interdisciplinary workshop on the regulatory and institutional frameworks for markets for ecosystem services. Jointly convened with Prof Rob Glicksman of The George Washington Law School, the workshop will be held at the School of Law, University of Surrey on 6-7 June 2012. The workshop seeks to contribute to research and learning on the law and policy on ecosystems services by focusing on the regulatory and institutional challenges in creating markets for ecosystems services. 

The Environment Regulatory Research Group wins EU grant for Project D-Box

7 November 2011

A consortium that includes the Environment Regulatory Research Group was awarded approximately EUR 9 million to undertake the D-BOX project: a humanitarian demining tool-box for large scale clearing of areas from anti-personnel landmines and cluster munitions. The D-BOX project intends to address the pressing issue of the clearance of anti-personnel land mines and cluster munitions left behind from armed conflicts, in a comprehensive and innovative approach. This should be achieved by developing  innovative easy-to-use, cost-effective solutions, contained in a comprehensive toolbox. The toolbox will be connected to real equipment and systems (ground biosensors, satellites, autonomous platforms, and command and control infrastructure) that will feed the toolbox with dynamic information such as position and type of mines coming from sensor measurements or human sources. This “dynamic knowledge” will provide the situation awareness and control necessary to prevent and manage a specific risk for demining teams and population through real time Geographic Information Systems. ERRG’s role on the project is to develop legal and ethical tools for the design and deployment of the toolbox.

New edition of Malcolm and Pointing’s Statutory Nuisance: Law and Practice

24 August 2011

We are pleased to advise that a new edition of Statutory Nuisance: Law and Practice is in press, due for publication in October 2011. Authored by Rosalind Malcolm and John Pointing, it has become the authoritative text on this area of law and guides the reader through the complex legal and practical issues associated with statutory nuisance. The book provides an extensive analysis of the concept and types of statutory nuisance and also offers a comprehensive resource for practitioners, focusing on the problems that local authorities face in enforcing this area, as well as the issues facing those advising defendants and appellants. Publisher web page.

ERRG hosts prestigious Summer Academy on Low Carbon Society

8 August 2011

The Environmental Regulatory Research Group in the School of Law hosted the prestigious 8th International Summer Academy “Energy and the Environment: Socio-Economic Opportunities and Drivers on the Way to a Low Carbon Society“ run by the Institute for Climate Protection, Energy and Mobility (IKEM - Law, Economics and Policy, and the University of Greifswald, Germany. This enjoyable event involved a week of stimulating presentations and discussions (including a presentation from ERRG's Deputy Director, Dr Thoko Kaime on 'Cultural Legitimacy and Climate Change') and culminated on the final day at the offices of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Solicitors in London. We look forward to continuing the many friendships which were forged during the week.

3K SAN project methodologies feature at EU-Africa policy summit

8 August 2011

Dr Kaime spoke at the EU-Africa Development Policy Summit  hosted by Friends of Europe and the Financial Times from 27-28 June 2011 at the Bibliotheque Solvay in Brussels.

He addressed  the topic ‘Helping Africa defeat the social odds’ and he focused on the role of higher education in addressing the developmental problems besetting Africa. He argued that there was a need to reconfigure the way in which African professionals were trained in order to provide them with skills that are ideally suited to solving African problems. 

Prof Malcolm and Dr Kaime attending 3K-SAN project meeting

13 June 2011

Professor Rosalind Malcolm and Dr Thoko Kaime will attend a partners’ meeting of the 3K-SAN project hosted by the Institute for Policy Analysis and Research in Kigali, Rwanda from 14-18 June 2011. The 3K-SAN project is developing and evaluating strategies for catalysing self-sustaining sanitation chains in low-income informal settlements in Kisumu (Kenya), Kampala (Uganda) and Kigali (Rwanda). Identification of commonalities and differences between these areas is being used to develop broader best-practice guidelines for comparable interventions in similar settlements throughout sub-Saharan Africa. This is the first meeting of the project partners and brings together researchers from the Centre de Recherche et d'Etudes sur les Pays d'Afrique Orientale; Institute of Policy Analysis and Research – Rwanda; Makerere University, Civil and Environmental Engineering; University of Surrey and the Victoria Institute for Research on Environment and Development, Kisumu, Kenya

Dr Kaime speaking at international Africa summit

13 June 2011

Dr Thoko Kaime will speak at a two-day international summit – Africa: Building on Growth; jointly organised by the Financial Times Ltd and the Friends of Europe think-tank at the Bibliotheque Solvay, Brussels on 27-28 June. The summit is a high level discussion of Europe’s changing relationship with Africa in the 21st century, providing a platform for constructive dialogue between policy makers and the private sector. Dr Kaime will address the topic: Helping Africa defeat the social odds.

Promoting Renewable Energies: The State Aid Dimension

21 April 2011

ERRG Visiting Researcher Mr Alvaro Antón Antón delivers a School of Law Seminar titled “Promoting Renewable Energies: The State Aid Dimension” [presentation]. This was the last activity of Mr Antón Antón at the School of Law of the University of Surrey before returning to his home institution: the Insituto de Etica y Derecho Ambiental, CEU University, Valencia, Spain.