The ESRC Green Criminology Research Seminar Series

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

Concerns about an ever-expanding array of global environmental harms and their social and economic impacts have become central to contemporary popular and political discourse. Green Criminology, which began to emerge as an identifiable strand of criminology in the early 1990s and has expanded and developed in recent years into a clear and distinct sub-discipline, can be seen as a particular and significant academic response to these concerns. Yet it remains marginalised in the larger field and those engaged with this highly relevant topic are isolated or in fractured groups. Despite this there are a number of books and articles published in the last few years, and Green Criminology panels are a feature of many criminology conferences. A unique seminar series dedicated to Green Criminology is both timely and important in creating the critical mass for the further development of this important emerging area of scholarship and firmly establishing a Green Crime network focused on these crucial concerns.There are, inevitably, many definitions of Green Criminology - also known as Eco and Environmental Criminology - but broadly speaking it can be defined as a criminological analysis of environmental harm, including harm to animals. For some, it narrowly focuses on Criminal Law and legal regulation to control or prevent environmental harm, including: the making and enforcement of such laws; the policing and prevention of Green Crimes; and the processes of prosecution and punishment of those accused and found guilty of such offences. For others, there is a broader interpretation. Green Criminology can additionally encompass: environmental harms that are not (yet) proscribed by criminal or other laws; issues of environmental, ecological, and species justice (White 2008); and victimisation from environmental harm. This is a brief list, but clearly demonstrates the need for enhanced interdisciplinary examination of environmental harm and its regulation, and the benefit that will come from closer relationships with practitioners and policy makers working in the areas of environmentalism and conservation.The main aim of the series is to realise this benefit by bringing together academics at all career stages from a range of disciplines such as law, sociology, criminology, and justice studies, to exclusively focus on the analysis and examination of Green Crimes. Crucially though, the series will also include ecological and conservation practitioners, environmental and wildlife law enforcement, and other experts. This core group of approximately 15 people (for whom we are applying for funding) will meet to exchange professional and academic knowledge and expertise, practical information, and research plans, which will further the state of Green Crime knowledge and lead to interdisciplinary research projects.The proposed series will have 5 half-day seminars and 1 2-day mini-conference beginning in October 2012. The seminars will take place every term until August 2014. They will each have 2 invited speakers, each experts on the topic. It is not possible to cover all the facets mentioned above, so the series will focus primarily on: 1.) Green Criminology Theories and Concepts; 2.) Wildlife and Timber Trafficking; 3.) Animal Abuse and Wildlife Crime; 4.) Hazardous Waste and Pollution; and 5.) Environmental Law and Regulation. The mini-conference will have sessions on each of these themes and time devoted to those aspects of Green Criminology not covered elsewhere in the series, such as methodological challenges, environmental conflict, and bio-piracy. The final conference will also have a session devoted to plans for future collaborative research, publications, and an annual conference. The series will have wide international dissemination because it will be webcast through a dedicated website and advertised using the Green Criminology list serve at the University of Colorado Denver, the CRIT-GEOG forum, Crimspace, and other avenues.