Bergen Energy and Climate Law Days 2023

The Bergen Energy and Climate Law Days will combine presentations and paper/chapter discussions by senior and younger legal researchers from the Nordics, creating a meeting place, encouraging dialogue, and being a regional dissemination arena for our academic disciplines. Half of the Bergen Energy and Climate Law Days will be reserved for PhD presentations, either the project in general or particular chapters/sections. PhD candidates will receive comments from a designated senior commentator. The other half of the event will be for senior researchers’ presentations and dialogue centered around the common challenges faced by our disciplines. 

The event is organized in connection with the “Wicked Waters” Research Network Project, generously funded by the Research Council of Norway.

The webpage will be updated shortly with further information regarding the conference and PhD session, including link for registration.

Please do not hesitate to contact us in case you have any questions regarding this event. 

Full programme:

• Download programme here.

23rd October - Younger Researchers’ Day & Research Trends in the Nordics

8.15 to 8.40 Coffee and registration

8.40 to 8.50 Welcome words: Sigrid Eskeland Schütz, Vicedean of the Law Faculty, UiB

8.50 to 9.15: Opening Keynote: Prof. Leigh Hancher – University of Tilburg, Florence School of Regulation.

9.15 to 10.45 – Young Researchers, Panel I: Barbara Bokor (chair)
• Presentation & comments 1: Elsabe Boshoff (UiO, Norway) - The right to sustainable development in Africa: a match for the Anthropocene? (30 mins) – Comments by Niko Soininen
• Presentation & comments 2: Sébastien Noël (UEF, Finland) - "Achieving GHG emissions reduction through hydrogen" (30 mins); comments by David Langlet
• Presentation & comments 3: Gullik-André Fjordbo & Ingvild Ånestad (UiO, Norway) – “The regulatory framework for the offshore grid in light of EU and EEA law” (30 mins); comments by Leigh Hancher

10.45 to 11.00: Coffee break and networking

11.00 to 12.35 Research trends in the Nordics I: Torhild Nordtveit (chair)
• Presentation 1: Melina Malafry - Landscape planning as an instrument for a climate change transition (U. Stockholm, Sweden) (25 mins)
• Presentation 2: Alessandro Monti (U. Copenhagen, Denmark) – Different Paths to the Same Goal? The Potential of BITs and FTAs for Achieving Climate Objectives (25 mins)
• Presentation 3: Gabriela Argüello (U. Gothenburg, Sweden) - Navigating Conflicts at Sea: Due Regard Obligations and Large-Scale Offshore Wind Power (25 mins)
• Q&A (for all presentations) (20 mins)

12.35 to 13.30 - Lunch break

13.30 to 15.10 – Young Researchers, Panel II: Siv Elén Årskog Vedvik (chair)
• Presentation & comments 4: Astrid Brunt (UiB, Norway) – “Unlocking the Potential of Demand Response” (30 mins) – comments by Gabriela Argüello
• Presentation & comments 5 (30 mins): Reza Maddahi (UEF, Finland) – “Global climate law and carbon capture and storage technology”- Comments by
• Presentation & comments 6 (30 mins): Chiara Morfea (UiB, Norway) – “Law “of” and “for” the Anthropocene: The Legal Dimension of the Planetary Emergency" (30 mins); comments by Karin Buhmann

15.10 to 15.30 Coffee break

15.30 to 16.30 – Research trends in the Nordics II / Young Researchers Panel III
• Presentation 3: Karin Buhmann (U. Southern Denmark) 'A fair transition in the Nordics: Risk-based due diligence as a solution to the dilemma between the need for an urgent transition and harmful human rights impacts?' (30 mins – including Q&A)
• Presentation & comments 7: Line Tjelflaat (UiB) Due diligence in corporate groups (30 mins) -Comments by Sigrid Eskeland Schütz

18.00 to 19.30 Get to know Bergen – guided walk: meeting point outside the Law Faculty

19.30 - Bergen Climate and Energy Law Days dinner

24th October - Research Trends in the Nordics & Practitioners and Industry Perspectives

8.30 to 8.45 Coffee and registration

8.45 to 9.15 Opening note: Monica Mæland – Director of the Bergen Chamber of Commerce and Industry, former Industry, Municipalities and Modernization, as well as Justice Minister (2013 to 2021).

9.15 to 10.15 Research trends in the Nordics III
• Presentation 4: Stella Tsani (National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece) “Local content policies: Literature review and future directions in view of the sustainability and energy transition” (25 mins)
• Presentation 5: Niko Soininen (UEF, Finland) "Does nature always lose? Evaluating the coherence of EU's climate, natural resource and environmental legislation affecting the marine environments"? (25 mins)
• Q&A (for all presentations) (10 mins)

10.15 to 10.45 Coffee break

10.45 to 11.45 Keynote: Prof. Leonie Reins, University of Rotterdam + Q&A session

11.45 to 12.45 – Lunch break

12.45 to 13.45 Research trends in the Nordics IV: Leila Neimane (chair)
• Presentation 6: David Langlet (U. Uppsala, Sweden) “Legitimacy in and of EU law for energy transition” (25 mins)
• Presentation 7: Seita Romppanen (UEF, Finland) “Examining the Interface of Climate and Energy Law: A Comparative Analysis on Legal Disciplines as a Legal Method in Transition” (25 mins)
• Q&A (for both presentations) (10 mins)

13.45 to 14.00 Coffee break

14.00 to 15.15 What are practitioners at? Enviro Student Association (chair)
• Schjødt Law Firm, Torkel Hope (20 mins)
• Hjort Law Firm – Title and speaker TBD (20 mins)
• PWC, Vilde Serene Birkelund – Working with the EU taxonomy rules in the seafood industry (20 mins)
• Q&A (for all presentations) (15 mins)
• Moderator & discussion leader: Enviro student organization

15.15 to 15.30 Coffee break

15.30 to 16.45 – Offshore Norge and University of Bergen: Decommissioning offshore energy assets: Studying possibilities for sustainability and circularity - Anne-Lise Søyland, Offshore Norge (chair)
• Roundtable discussion:
      Speaker 1: Vidar Høivangli, Aker Solutions
      Speaker 2: Kristian Kudsk Andreasen, Equinor
      Speaker 3: Ignacio Herrera Anchustegui, UiB

16.45 to 17.30 – Closing words & Farewell drinks