An Introduction to the Fundamentals of Environmental Law

Environmental law is a complicated area of the law, combining science, law, and government policy under one large umbrella! It attempts to shelter us from the heat of climate change while also helping us to develop laws for our land use, the protection of our wildlife, and the integration of new forms of energy. The Fundamentals of Law section will give you a brief introduction to environmental law, what it is, what it can do, and where it comes from.

This is a good place to start your investigation of environmental law, as it lays the basis for future discussions around specific environmental concerns (such as water, species, waste management, and climate change).  Start with the links on the left hand side, and as you complete each sub-topic, you will follow the links at the bottom of each page (or the links on the left hand side) to the next topic in order.

Teachers:

  • Lesson plans are designed to be used in conjunction (and often after) spending time on the website content itself. They are adaptable and can be used in their entirety or parts of each can be drawn on to create content appropriate for your grade level and curriculum.
  • We suggest starting with the Fundamentals of Environmental Law lesson plan to help you lead your students through this topic. This lesson plan is a good way to encourage students to work their way through the website as it is an amalgamation of numerous environmental law issues. 

Students

  • The Fundamentals of Environmental Law lesson plan is a great way to review your readings on this topic and help move you through the rest of the website. 
  • The website content and lesson plans can be completed in groups or on your own to expand your thinking. Make sure to check back with the website content if you have any questions or aren’t sure how to finish.

Additional Resources

  • Don’t forget that you can always look to our Resources page for some other websites and sources of information both to help with the lesson plans and to expand your knowledge even further!

 

 

What is Environmental Law >>

 

 

 

 

 

Fundamentals of Environmental Law

Lesson Plan: Fundamentals of Environmental Law
Lesson Plan: Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
Lesson Plan: Tragedy of the Commons
Lesson Plan: Climate Litigation

Curriculum Connections

Newsletter

Join our new Alberta Environmental Laws 101 Facebook group to ask questions, participate in discussions and keep up to date on environmental news. Please share this widely so that the high school teachers and students in your circles hear about this great new resource for supplemental online learning. Alberta Environmental Laws 101 Facebook Group