Professor Donna Craig
B.A., LL.B (Univ. of NSW), LL.M (Osgoode Hall, York Univ. Canada)
Current Positions:
Professor of Law and Associate Director, Macquarie University Centre for Environmental Law (MU-CEL), Director MU-CEL Indigenous Rights Program and Professor of Desert Knowledge, Charles Darwin University , Alice Springs Campus (joint appointment.)
Academic Qualifications:
- Bachelor of Laws, University of NSW , 1976
- Bachelor of Arts, University of NSW , 1976
- Master of Laws (LL.M), Osgoode Hall Law School , York University , Canada , 1983.
Professional Qualifications:
- Barrister, admitted in New South Wales 1977-1991
- Admitted as a Legal Practitioner in New South Wales 1991
Areas of Interest:
- Indigenous resource management, native title, sustainable livelihoods and intellectual and cultural property rights
- Treaties and negotiated agreements with Indigenous Peoples
- Water Law
- Bioprospecting
- Sustainable Development
- Environmental, Social and Cultural Impact Assessment
- Comparative Environmental Law
- Corporate Environmental Law and Environmental Management
- Community based environmental management, co-management and customary law
Current Teaching (2006)
Law 811/855 Environmental Law and Sustainable Development (Convener)
Law 817/853 Comparative Environmental Law (Convener)
Law 819/866 Comparative Indigenous Environmental Law and Management (Intensive Course Unit offered in Alice Springs through Charles Darwin University, 4-6th May 2006)
Professional Affiliations and Editorial Boards:
- Member of Steering Committee of Call of the Earth Circle: An International Indigenous Peoples Initiative on Intellectual Property Policy, funded by the Rockefeller Foundation
- Foundation and ongoing member of Advisory Board of International Training Centre of Indigenous Peoples (ITCIP), substantially funded by the Ford Foundation
- Member of Expert Environmental Law Advisory Group for the IUCN/ Asia Pacific Centre for Environmental Law/ UNEP Training the Trainers Courses on Capacity Building for Environmental Legal Education (1994-1998) substantially funded by the Asian Development Bank
- Regional Governor, International Council on Environmental Law (ICEL) (1995-2002).
- Vice-Chair (Oceana) of the Commission on Environmental Law of the World Conservation Union (IUCN) for the maximum two terms (1994-2001)
- Member of IUCN Commission on Environmental Law (CEL) (1992 – 2005)
- Foundation Convener, (now Co-Convener with an indigenous lawyer) of IUCN CEL Specialist Group on Indigenous Peoples and Environmental Law
- Member of the Australian Committee for the World Conservation Union (ACIUCN)
- Director of Indigenous Law Program, Associate Director of Environmental Law Centre, Macquarie University .
- Member of the Australian Conservation Foundation
- Member of Editorial Board, Australian Indigenous Law Reporter
- Member of Editorial Board of Review of European Community and International Environmental Law (RECIEL) - 1991-1996
Academic Experience:
Over twenty five years experience as an academic teaching international environmental law, corporate environmental law, planning law and other common law courses to undergraduate and postgraduate students.
- Professor, Law Division, Macquarie University.
- Associate Director, Centre for Environmental Law, Director CEL Indigenous Law Program, Macquarie University
- Inaugural Visiting Professor (2002), James E. Rogers School of Law, Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy LL.M. Program, University of Arizona
Professional Experience:
- Previously, Head of Australian Environmental and Planning Law Practice, Baker & McKenzie (1991-1993).
- Admitted as a Barrister (1977-1991).
- Admitted and practiced as a Solicitor (1991-1997).
- Partner, Craig & Ehrlich, Solicitors (specialist environmental law firm) 1993-1996.
- National and international consultant in Environmental and Indigenous Law and Policy (1984- ongoing)
- Environmental Consultant: Dames and Moore, Planning Workshop (1980-1883)
Law Reform:
- Assisted with advice, workshop and report (Australia 's Options for the Intergovernmental Forum on Forests) to the Australian Government on proposals for an international forest treaty under consideration by the Commission on Sustainable Development of the United Nations, 1998.
- Contributed to the preparation of a Draft International Convention on Sustainable Development. The first stage involved a draft prepared by the Environmental Law Commission of the World Conservation Union (IUCN) (1991-1995).
- Participated in a Workshop on Review of all Commonwealth environmental legislation, at the invitation of the Dept of Environment, Sport and Heritage, 1996.
- Attended WIK Summit (1996) at invitation of Aboriginal land councils to propose legislative responses to the High Court Case on indigenous peoples co-existence on leasehold land.
- Member of Australian Institute for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies project team for the Regional Agreements Project which provide research, case studies and proposals for negotiated regional agreements to settle native title and the on-going management regimes involving indigenous peoples in Australia.
- Assisted in the Preparation of submission of Mr Mick Dodson (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner, Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission) to the Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia on the Social Justice Package (3 volumes) April 1995 as a response to the High Court decision in the Mabo case.
Professional Development:
- High profile role in developing environmental legal education curricula, training and research in the Asian and Pacific Region.
- Participated extensively in organisation and in giving presentations at Conference and Seminars in Australia and overseas (see below and list of Publications).
- Comparative research has resulted in invitations to present papers at tripartite conferences on environmental assessment in Australia , Canada and New Zealand , organized by the respective governments.
- Participated in international and national activities related to key aspects of the Biodiversity Convention
- Participated in formation of a new international research and policy group initiated to promote the design and implementation of markets for environmental services and the development of market based mechanisms for biodiversity conservation (particularly in relation to forests) known as the Katoomba Group (2000).
Other Examples of Professional Development:
- Co-convener of IUCN Specialist Group on Indigenous Peoples and Environmental Law (1999-2002), Assisted in the development of the Work Plan and organised a meeting of key indigenous experts in 2002.
- Assisted with organisation (as Steering Committee Member of a three year research Project titled Call of the Earth Circle - An International Indigenous Peoples Initiative on Intellectual Property) in a five day meeting titled the Bellagio Indigenous Peoples' Dialogue on Intellectual Property (2002). This was part of a month long series of meeting of experts facilitated by the Rockerfeller Foundation to develop global dialogues on intellectual property law and policy.
- Assisted in the organisation and presented papers at IUCN/ Asian Development Bank/ Institute for Global Environmental Strategies Symposium on the Second Generation of Environmental Laws, in Tokyo, Japan, 2002 - A key meeting on the development of international and Comparative Environmental Law in Japan.
- Attended, as observer, the first intergovernmental meetings on the South Pacific Environment Programme and the parties to the Convention on the Protection of Natural Resources and Environment of the South Pacific Region and the Convention on the Conservation of Nature in the South Pacific, 1991.
- Member of organising committee for Workshop on Human Rights and Environmental Protection: the Vital Link and presented a paper. The edited proceedings were sent to the United Nations Human Rights Commission as they were preparing a report on this topic, Sydney, 1992.
- Member of organising committee for a Regional Forum (Asia/Pacific) in preparation for the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, 1992 (UNCED).
- Presented training sessions on international and national environmental law in Training Course on Environmental Impact Assessment for the Royal Thai Government Departments (1993, 1994).
- Member of IUCN International Taskforce which has developed a Guide and Case Studies relating to Indigenous Peoples and Sustainable Development strategies (1993-1996).
- Assisted in the organisation of the first Australian Workshop on Regional Agreements and Indigenous Peoples, hosted by Cape York Land Council (July, 1994), presented papers and facilitated sessions.
- Organized and participated in Workshop for the World Conservation Congress (IUCN, Montreal, October, 1996) on Comprehensive Approaches for Ensuring the Rights of Indigenous Peoples: New Standard - Setting Approaches for International Environmental Law and directed IUCN Law Commission research project on this subject (1994-1996)
See also Publications
See also Research Projects
Contact Information:
Macquarie Law School
Building W3A - room 440
Macquarie University
Sydney NSW 2109
Telephone: 61 2 9850 7077
Fax: 61 2 9850 7686
e-mail: donna.craig@mq.edu.au
Copyright © Macquarie University 2003