ICEL GOVERNANCE
ICEL adopted its statutes on 26 November 1969. Its last amendment took place at a meeting of ICEL-members in Paris on 24 June 2017.
- Art. 1, Para 1 of the ICEL-Statutes (“Nature and Seat”) stipulates:
“ICEL is an international organization established under Article 60 of the Swiss Civil Code. Its legal seat is in Geneva, Switzerland.” ICEL is registered as a non-profit association in the register of associations of the Canton of Geneva. - Art. 2, Para 1 of the ICEL-Statutes (“Functions”) says:
“ICEL shall promote the progressive development of international and comparative environmental law and its related disciplines, to encourage a transformative effect on the principles of law and practices, through providing expert advice and advancing proposals that have a realistic prospect of being adopted.”
Tasks and Functions of the ICEL-bodies
The “Board of Governors” shall not exceed 15 members. It is the Supervisory Board of ICEL. Ex-officio member of the Board is the chairman of the IUCN World Commission on Environmental Law, Justice Antonio Benjamin, Brazil. The Board of Governors is elected for a period of five years by the membership of ICEL.
Currently is conformed by:
Justice Antonio Herman Benjamin (Brazil) – Chancellor
Chair, IUCN World Commission on Environmental Law; Judge of the High Court of Brazil (Superior Tribunal de Justiça)
Prof. Nicholas A. Robinson (U.S.A.) – Executive Governor
Emeritus Professor, Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University (NY, U.S.A.)
Prof. Teresa Parejo (Spain) – Treasurer
Head Sustainability Department, IBERIA, and professor on leave Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (uc3m)
Prof. Victor Tafur (Colombia, U.S.A.) – Secretary, Associate Executive Governor
Director, UN Environmental Diplomacy Program, Adjunct Faculty, Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University (NY, U.S.A.)
Prof. Montserrat Abad, Co-Director of ICEL International Secretary
Professor of Public international Law, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (Spain)
Prof. Ben Boer (Australia) – Chair, ICEL Publications Committee
Visiting Professor, Wuhan University (China)
Prof. Malcolm Forster (U.K.)
Formerly Partner, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, and Honorary Professor of International Law, Nottingham Law School, U.K.
Prof. Koh Kheng Lian (Singapore) [Chair, Nominations Committee]
Emeritus Professor and Director of APCEL, National University of Singapore
Rose Lesley Kautoke, Esq. (Tonga)
Attorney General’s Chamber, Kingdom of Tonga
Prof. Patricia Kameri-Mbote (Kenya)
Professor, School of Law, University of Nairobi
Prof. Reinhard J. Krapp (Germany)
Minister and diplomat, retired, Federal Republic of Germany
Prof. Nilüfer Oral (Turkey)
Director, Center for International Law, National University of Singapore
Member of UN International Law Comission
Prof. Eckard Rehbinder (Germany)
Emeritus Professor, Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Prof. Alexandr Solntsev (Russia)
Head of Department of International law of the People’s Friendship University in Russia (RUDN), Moscow
Prof. Christina Voigt (Norway)
Professor, University of Oslo, Department of Public and International Law, Coordinator at PluriCourts, Center of Excellence at the University of Oslo (Oslo, Norway), Chair of the Climate Change Specialist Group of the IUCN World Commission on Environmental Law, and Member of the IUCN Task Force on Climate Change
Prof. Zhou Chen (China)
Professor Xiamen University Law School and Chief-Secretary in International Environmental Law of the China Environmental and Resources Law Association
The “Bureau” – including the Chair, Vice Chair, Executive Governor, Treasurer and Secretary – is the executive committee of the Board of Governors and responsible for the day-to-day business of ICEL.
ICEL is represented at UN organizations by “ICEL Representatives” – currently in New York, Vienna, Geneva, Nairobi, Beirut, Paris, Pacific, Bangkok, Santiago de Chile, Rome and Bonn.
Prof. Nicholas A. Robinson – New York
Prof. Victor Tafur – New York
Ms. Milena Bellini Sheppard – Geneva
Mr. Donald Kaniaru – Nairobi
Mr. Reinhard Krapp, Bonn
Mr. Antonio Oposa, Ombudman for Future Generations
Ms. Hiroko Muraki-Gottlieb, Oceans
Ms. Koh Kheng Lian, ASEAN
Mr. Chikosa Banda, African-Asian Legal Consultative Organization
Mr. Shakeel Kazmi, International Renewable Energy Agency
Mr. Juan Cruz Allí Turrillas, World Tourism Organization (WTO)
Over several decades two “Executive Governors” exerted the secretariat function. The current ICEL-statutes have been revised in Paris in 2017 and they provide now for only one Executive Governor, who is the functioning director and chief executive officer for ICEL. Prof. Nicholas Robinson is the current Executive Governor.
ICEL Statutes are public and open to be consulted for those interested on this organization.
