Expertise
Verschuuren's research mainly focuses on the role of international and EU environmental law in legal practice. Current research focuses on climate change, particularly adaptation. As of 2015, Verschuuren primarily researches the impact of climate change on agriculture and vice versa, particularly with a view to developing a regulatory framework for climate smart agriculture. In 2015, he was awarded a two year Marie Sklodowska Curie Global Fellowship on this topic. In 2016, he spent 12 months at the ACCEL for the first year of this project, primarily with the aim to assess the experiences with Australia?s carbon farming initiative. This project also comprised empirical research, mostly through interviewing stakeholders (governments, carbon agents, farmers organisations, banks etc.). In 2017, he returned to Europe, to see whether and how similar instruments aimed at stimulating farmers to convert to climate smart practices can be integrated in the EU's climate and agricultural policies. In that year he also received the prestigious senior scholarship prize of the IUCN Academy of Environmental Law.
Verschuuren has written more than 200 publications in the field on environmental law, include many articles in outstanding refereed journals throughout the world.
Some of his research themes: Climate change, adaptation, coastal adaptation, geo-engineering, climate change and armed conflicts, biodiversity, European and International Environmental Law, Environmental Law, Environmental Justice, Wild Birds and Habitats Directives, Wetlands Convention, precautionary principle, codification, globalisation and the environment, corporate social responsibility and environmental law, water law, transboundary cooperation
Keywords
Principal publications
- Jonathan Verschuuren, Stimulating Climate Smart Agriculture within the Boundaries of International Trade Law, Carbon and Climate Law Review, Vol. 10, No. 4 (2016), p. 177-186
- Jonathan Verschuuren, The Paris Agreement on Climate Change: Agriculture and Food Security, European Journal of Risk Regulation, Vol. 7, No. 1 (2016), p. 54-57
- Jonathan Verschuuren,The growing significance of the principle of sustainable development as a legal norm, in: Douglas Fisher (ed.), Research Handbook on Fundamental Concepts of Environmental Law, Edward Elgar Publishing (2016), ISBN 978-1-78471-464-2, p. 276-305
- Jonathan Verschuuren, Hydraulic fracturing and environmental concerns: The role of local government, Journal of Environmental Law, Vol. 27, No. 3 (2015), p. 431-457
- Jonathan Verschuuren, Towards a Regulatory Design for Reducing Emissions from Agriculture: Lessons from Australia?s Carbon Farming Initiative, Climate Law, Vol. 7, No. 1 (2017), p. 1-51
Click here for the list of publications in the Research Portal
Education
In 1993, Verschuuren received his PhD degree cum laude on the basis of a dissertation on the Constitutional Right to Environmental Protection (Tilburg, supervisor: prof.dr. Piet Gilhuis).
Career
In 1999, Verschuuren obtained the position of full professor of International and European Environmental Law at Tilburg University, the faculty of the Tilburg Sustainability Center and the Center for Transboundary Legal Development. His research primarily focuses on climate law, in particular on adaptation. In 2016, Verschuuren is a Marie Sklodowska Curie fellow at the Australian Centre for Climate and Environmental Law at the University of Sydney. There, he assesses the experiences with Australia?s carbon farming initiative. This project also comprised empirical research, mostly through interviewing stakeholders (governments, carbon agents, farmers organisations, banks etc.). In 2017, Verschuuren will return to Europe, to see whether and how similar instruments aimed at stimulating farmers to convert to climate smart practices can be integrated in the EU?s climate and agricultural policies, and thus to develop a regulatory framework for climate smart agriculture. He also is or has been a visiting professor at the universities of Connecticut, North West/Potchefstroom (South Africa), Leuven (Belgium) and Malta. Since 2008, Verschuuren has been appointed as "extraordinary professor" at the North West University in South Africa. In the past, Verschuuren was a member of the Dutch national advisory council for the Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment. He is a member of the World Commission on Environmental Law and the Academy of Environmental Law, both of IUCN. From 2008 until 2010, Verschuuren acted as the vice dean research of the Tilburg Law School and as the director of its graduate school.
. In 2015, he was awarded a two year Marie Sklodowska Curie Global Fellowship on this topic. In 2016, he spent 12 months at the ACCEL for the first year of this project, primarily with the aim to assess the experiences with Australia?s carbon farming initiative. This project also comprised empirical research, mostly through interviewing stakeholders (governments, carbon agents, farmers organisations, banks etc.). In 2017, he returned to Europe, to see whether and how similar instruments aimed at stimulating farmers to convert to climate smart practices can be integrated in the EU's climate and agricultural policies. In that year he also received the prestigious senior scholarship prize of the IUCN Academy of Environmental Law.
Publications
Principal publications
- Jonathan Verschuuren, Stimulating Climate Smart Agriculture within the Boundaries of International Trade Law, Carbon and Climate Law Review, Vol. 10, No. 4 (2016), p. 177-186
- Jonathan Verschuuren, The Paris Agreement on Climate Change: Agriculture and Food Security, European Journal of Risk Regulation, Vol. 7, No. 1 (2016), p. 54-57
- Jonathan Verschuuren,The growing significance of the principle of sustainable development as a legal norm, in: Douglas Fisher (ed.), Research Handbook on Fundamental Concepts of Environmental Law, Edward Elgar Publishing (2016), ISBN 978-1-78471-464-2, p. 276-305
- Jonathan Verschuuren, Hydraulic fracturing and environmental concerns: The role of local government, Journal of Environmental Law, Vol. 27, No. 3 (2015), p. 431-457
- Jonathan Verschuuren, Towards a Regulatory Design for Reducing Emissions from Agriculture: Lessons from Australia?s Carbon Farming Initiative, Climate Law, Vol. 7, No. 1 (2017), p. 1-51
Click here for the list of publications in the Research Portal
Projects
Verschuuren's research is mainly focused on climate law, particularly at climate smart agriculture and the legal aspects of adaptation to climate change, as well as on the relationship between international, European and national environmental law, e.g. in the field of nature protection and water law (Wild Birds Directive, Water Framework Directive, Wetlands Convention). He also studies legal environmental justice, the human right to environmental protection, environmental legal principles, management of transboundary wetlands/protected areas, governance, legal pluralism.
Direct and indirect funding
Current projects:
Recent projects:
- Economic instruments to achieve climate targets in Europe (focus on Emissions Trading Scheme)(ENTRACTE, EU FP7 project 2012-2015)
- Innovatie en milieuregelgeving (Ministerie van I&M 2014-2015)
- Climate-induced foreign agro-investment in Ethiopia and Uganda: improving the legal pathways and securing the empowerment of local stakeholders (NWO project development grant 2012-2013)
- The legal aspects of connectivity conservation (IUCN 2012-2013)
- Juridische aspecten van geo-engineering voor klimaatverandering, onderzoek voor het Rathenau Insituut (2012)
- Climate change and armed conflict, project for The Hague Institute for Global Justice (2012)
- Juridische toets: passende beoordeling boomkorvisserij in de Natura 2000-gebieden Voordelta, Noordzeekustzone, Vlakte van Raan, onderzoek voor Greenpeace, Februari 2012, 11 p. (met A. Trouwborst)
- Juridische toets doelensytematiek Natura 2000 in Nederland, research report for BirdLife Netherlands, October 2006, 43 pages (with C.J. Bastmeijer, M.K. de Bruin), also published by BirdLife Netherlands, Zeist 2006, 46 pages
- Effectentoets voor specifieke beleidsmaatregelen en regelgeving ter beheersing van geurhinder veroorzaakt door hinderlijke inrichtingen, Advice for the Flemish Environment Ministry on combatting industrial odours, December 2006, 181 pages (with I. Larmuseau et al.)
- Tussensprint naar 2015. Advies over de financiering van de primaire waterkeringen voor de bescherming van Nederland tegen overstroming, Advice by the Advisory Commission on the Financing of Primary Dykes for the Minister of Water, Public Works and Traffic, December 2006, 70 pages (with P. Vellinga, M.J.F. Stive, J.K. Vrijling, P.B. Boorsma, E.V. van Ierland)
- Advies inzake uitgangspunt Wabo 'Eens bevoegd gezag, altijd bevoegd gezag', Advice for the Association of Dutch Municipalities (VNG), January 2007, 14 pages (with M.K. de Bruin, F.C.M.A. Michiels)
- Internationaal natuurbeschermingsrecht: inspiratie voor de nationale wetgever?, Advice for the Dutch Ministry for Agriculture, Food Quality and Nature, October 2007 (with M.K. de Bruin, C.J. Bastmeijer) - will be made public Feb. 2008
Collaboration
Marie Curie Fellow University of Sydney (2016)
Expert Pool WaterLex (2016)
Visiting professor University of Sydney (Australian Centre for Climate and Environmental Law) (2011)
member Malta Forum Legal Issues for Adaptation to Climate Change (2011-present)
Extraordinary professor North West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa
member Commission on Environmental Law, IUCN
member IUCN Academy of Environmental Law
Visiting professor University of Connecticut (2000, 2009)
Visiting faculty Leuven University (master of international and European environmental and energy law)
External accreditation
2017 senior scholarship prize IUCN Acdemy of Environmental Law
Research supervision
Verschuuren is or has been supervising more than 20 PhD students on following topics: Environmental Self-Regulation (Dr. Rob van Gestel), The Antarctic Protocol and its legal implementation at the domestic level (Dr. Kees Bastmeijer), Information and Product Chain Management (Dr. Tom de Wit), Environmental Impact Assessment (Dr. Katinka Jesse), The Concept of Biodiversity in Law (Dr. Timon Oudenaarden), Efficacy of Biodiversity related International Law (Dr. Karin Baakman), The Realisation of South Africa's Environmental Human Right at Local Government Level (Anel du Plessis LLD), Environmental Justice in Europe (Dr. Steve Kuchta), Transfer of technology under the international climate change regime to China (Dr. Zhou Chen), Transfrontier biodiversity conservation in southern Africa (Niel Lubbe LLD), Liability for nuclear damage under international public law (Dr. Sayed Zeidan), Legal aspects of geo-engineering technology trials (Dr. Jesse Reynolds), Legal protection of future generations in climate law (Dr. Peter Lawrence), Climate-induced migration (Dr. Mariya Gromilova), Environmental law in the antropocene (Dr. Louis Kotzé), rights-based approach to foreign agro-investments in Africa (Dr. Jean Claude Ashukem), Greening tax law in Ethiopia (Merhatbeb T. Gebregiorg), Flyway protection of European migratory vogels in Africa (Melissa Lewis), Public participation in environmental impact assessment in Ethiopia (Dr. Desta G. Gidey), liability for environmental damage by oil spills from oil rigs (Yuan Yang), water scarcity under climate change and river basin management (Miriam Jafrudi), sustainable cities and planning law (Angela van der Berg).
Conferences
2017
The impact of soil carbon sequestration on adaptation in Europe?s agricultural sector and the potential role of regulatory instruments, paper accepted for 3rd European Climate Change Adaptation Conference, Glasgow, 5th-9th June 2017
2016
The impact of environmental legislation on eco-innovations, paper presented at staff seminar Centre for Sustainable Futures, University of Technology Sydney 26 October 2016
Towards regulating climate smart agriculture: lessons from Australia?s Emissions Reduction Fund, Paper presented at two seminars during Global Climate Change Week, University of Sydney 12 October 2016, and University of New South Wales, Sydney 13 October 2016
Experiences with the CFI/ERF in Australia: lessons for Europe?, Paper presented at seminar Australian Centre for Climate and Environmental Law, University of Sydney, 2 May 2016, and at staff seminar Faculty of Law, University of Tasmania, 21 July 2016
The Paris Climate Agreement: agriculture and food security, Paper presented at the Australian Center for Climate and Environmental Law Conference: 'The Legal Implications of the Paris Agreement', 11 February 2016, University of Sydney, Australia
2015
Promoting connectivity in the EU: what role for EU nature conservation law? Paper accepted for the IUCN Academy of Environmental Law 13th Annual Colloquium, Forest and Marine Biodiversity, September 7-12, 2015, Atma Jaya Catholic University, Jakarta, Indonesia
Teaching
International and European Environmental Law
Climate Law
Crisis and EU Law
Methodology of Legal Research
Teaching activities elsewhere
- Lectures on EU Birds and Habitats Directives and EU Industrial Emissions Directive, Leuven University, Master in Energy and Environmental Law (2002-2011)
- Lectures on EU Birds and Habitats Directives and EU Industrial Emissions Directive, LLM Energy, Environmental and Climate Change Law, University of Malta (2013-2017)
- European Environmental Law, University of Connecticut (2009)
- Coastal Adaptation Law, University of Sydney (2011)
- Biodiversity Law, University of Sydney (2011)
- and a range of guest lectures in the field of environmental law at the universities of Connecticut (2000), Rijeka, Croatia (2004), North West, South Africa (2005-present)
Contact details
Room
M 530
PO Box 90153
5000 LE Tilburg
Global / English
Nederlands