Our Environmental Law program is ranked #3 among public law schools and #7 among all law schools in U.S. News & World Report, and rated A+ by PreLaw Magazine.
Named after the Pulitzer Prize-winning author and conservationist, the Wallace Stegner Center for Land, Resources & the Environment offers students one of the top environmental and natural resources law programs in the United States. We also offer unparalleled access to the mountains, rivers, and desert landscapes that inspire us, and many students, to pursue environmental law.
Modern society has the power to profoundly alter our natural surroundings. From the carbon emissions of our fossil fuel-dependent economy to fragmentation of cultural and ecological landscapes through development, to conflicts over allocating scarce natural resources, we promote understanding of the relationship between environmental laws and social actions, the tradeoffs that we face in allocating scarce resources, and the opportunities to develop legal and policy institutions that can foster a more just, diverse, and equitable future.
The Stegner Center offers students a variety of educational opportunities, including a JD Certificate in Environmental and Natural Resources Law, an LLM degree, numerous substantive law courses, a Law & Policy Program, the Great Salt Lake Project, an Environmental Dispute Resolution Program, and a variety of public events and speakers at the College of Law.
The Stegner Center boasts a talented and diverse team of faculty members who are working to shape environmental law and policy, and who are committed to involving students in that work. Our faculty members serve on local and national NGO boards and advisory committees, collaborate with state and federal government officials to improve environmental policies, and they advocate in the courtroom and legislative chambers.
At the Wallace Stegner Center for Land, Resources & the Environment, we believe that well-conceived and carefully implemented laws and policies are the cornerstones of a just and equitable society, and we invite you to join us in that pursuit.
LATEST STEGNER CENTER NEWS
Stegner Center names Daniels and Davies as incoming co-directors
Jul 23, 2024The S.J. Quinney College of Law is pleased to announce that professors of law Brigham Daniels and Lincoln Davies have been named co-directors of the Wallace Stegner Center for Land, Resources and the Environment. Daniels and Davies began jointly leading the Stegner Center on July 1. Together, they will guide the scholarly and educational activities of one of the nation’s top centers for environmental law.
Making waves: Utah Law professors and alum Brian Steed partner to save the Great Salt Lake
Jul 15, 2024In early 2023, a widely publicized report predicted that the Great Salt Lake would disappear within five years if its loss rate continued. To highlight legal pathways to restoring the lake, the Wallace Stegner Center launched the Great Salt Lake Project—and a brand-new class called the Environmental Policy Accelerator to give students firsthand experience working with policymakers to address environmental challenges.
When dealing with conflict, don’t just be nice—be kind and firm
Jul 01, 2024As I explain, being kind and firm helps us focus on what really matters and get good outcomes for ourselves and others when dealing with conflict—and, in doing so, it helps us avoid many of the problems people create by focusing on “just being nice.”
Trees to torts: Rising 3L Natalie Merline pursues interest in environmental justice
Jun 25, 2024Rising 3L Natalie Merline earned her bachelor’s degree in environmental science and says she always assumed she would work within science. While earning her undergraduate, however, she couldn’t see a clear career path within science.
