Law at the End of the World

Elizabeth Macpherson and Cristy Clark
  • 4.5 (2)
  • Social Sciences

In this podcast, coming to you from the end of the world, Elizabeth Macpherson and Cristy Clark share developments and insights about how law is being used to support outcomes for the environment and those who depend on it - i.e. everyone.

  1. Aug 24

    Why I Research Water Law - Episode 22 (with Elizabeth Macpherson)

    In this episode, we explore the tension inherent in researching environmental law in the context of an increasingly politicised research context. We share Liz's inaugural professorial lecture from October 2024, and Cristy uses the opportunity to interview Liz about why she researchers water law. We discuss typical problems encountered in settler-colonial water law frameworks, and how innovative governance models, like that for the Whanganui River in Aotearoa New Zealand, suggest potentail other ways for governing human-water relationships. As always, Cristy and Liz explore recent developments in environmental law, water governance, climate change policies, and Indigenous rights, sharing insights and updates on key legal cases and policy reforms in Australia and beyond. Key hilights include a public law climate case in Aotearoa, a judicial review about engagement with First Nations about water allocation decisions in Australia, and a win for the case opposing oil and gas exploration off the coast of South Africa. Video of Liz's Professorial Lecture Why science must reinforce its social contract | Nature on Science Communication. - by Peter Dearden - Snarked Setting a pluralist agenda for water governance: Why power and scale matter  Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu - headstart Iwi proposal would reshape councils around mountains and rivers Michael John Smith v Attorney-General High Court rules in favour of native title holders fighting Northern Territory water licence  Court Awards $62 Million to Isabel Communities Over Unlawful Logging Landmark judgment in South Africa permanently halts Shell’s Wild Coast oil and gas exploration Would you like to leave us a comment about our show? send us a note here Visit our podcast website - where you can find more information, including the show notes.  You can also find us on the following platforms: LinkedIn - Liz & CristyBluesky - Liz & CristyOur websites - Liz & Cristy

  2. Jul 28

    Doing a PhD, becoming an academic, and staying one - Episode 21 (with Inger Mewburn AKA The Thesis Whisperer)

    In this episode, Cristy and Liz explore academic career planning with our very special guest, Professor Inger Mewburn (AKA The Thesis Whisperer), who talks to us about her own academic career, her current research, her work with PhD students and neurodivergent academics, and the under-rated skill of project management for researchers (the subject of her latest book). As usual, we also share recent developments in domestic and international environmental law, including climate change litigation, water rights, and heritage protection. https://thesiswhisperer.com Managing Your Research Project: A Guide for Researchers Climate adaptation without funding is planning without delivery | EDS  Under the Lens | Podcast on Spotify NZ’s overhaul of nature protection laws is a chance to move away from ‘fortress conservation’ NZ's climate goals off-track - Expert Reaction - Science Media Centre  Hard Truths Case Papunya Climate Safe Housing Case Australian Conservation Foundation Inc; Friends of Australian Rock Art Inc v Minister for the Environment and Water & Anor Would you like to leave us a comment about our show? send us a note here Visit our podcast website - where you can find more information, including the show notes.  You can also find us on the following platforms: LinkedIn - Liz & CristyBluesky - Liz & CristyOur websites - Liz & Cristy

  3. Jun 17

    The Politics of Despair and Hope in the Ecocene - Episode 20 (with Mihnea Tănăsescu)

    In this episode, Mihnea Tănăsescu joins us to discuss his groundbreaking research on Ecocene Politics. Mihnea reflects on how we can conceptualise human relationships with nature, with particular attention to learning from place-based restoration projects and Indigenous legal systems. We critically explore how hope, despair, and lucidity can help or hinder our attempts to make sense of the ecological challenges communities are facing around the world. We also discuss the ways that legal and political theory scholars can draw on and connect to other academic disciplines, like ecology, and use fieldwork to ground their thinking in lived experiences and place. As always, Cristy and Liz round off with their updates about environmental law developments, including further developments in Aotearoa's climate tort saga and the status of Aborignal cultural heritage reform and climate litigation in Australia. Profile of Mihnea Tanasescu (UMONS)  Ecocene Politics Researching river personhood: Making the case for relational research methods Law and the Environment: An Act of Legal Kintsugi? Woodside case  Australian position on fossil fuels and renewables Western Australia and Aboriginal heritage  Inequality lab global justice project Complaint laid with Ombudsman about 'apparent withholding' of information by PM's office Committee recommends disestablishing Environment Ministry despite public opposition Would you like to leave us a comment about our show? send us a note here Visit our podcast website - where you can find more information, including the show notes.  You can also find us on the following platforms: LinkedIn - Liz & CristyBluesky - Liz & CristyOur websites - Liz & Cristy

  4. May 21

    What everyone gets wrong about the rights of nature - Episode 19 (with Erin O'Donnell)

    In this episode, Associate Professor Erin O'Donnell (U Melbourne) joins us as a guest co-host to chat with us about the perils, pitfalls, and promise of researching in the burgeoning field of rights of nature. We discuss the top methodological challenges inherent in doing research about the rights of nature and legal personhood, and provide our thoughts about how to do this sort of work ethically and in a way that contributes to the scholarly field, the community, and nature itself. As always, we round off with our updates about developments in environmental law including cases, legislation, and policy changes. Highlights include international pressure to implement the ICJ Advisory Opinion on climate change, climate litigation in Australia, and fisheries and conservation reforms and government interference with climate litigation in Aotearoa New Zealand. People, Place and Nature in Indigenous-Settler Relations Doing research about relational water governance… relationally: Critical methodological reflections about legal research on river personhood UN experts urge states to support General Assembly resolution operationalising  ICJ Advisory Opinion on climate obligations Climate Change in the High Court of Australia Statutory Consultation open: Environmental Offsets Standard River Thames in London gets first official bathing spot on Friday 3rd Global Citizenship Education Hub Missed opportunities in the Fisheries Amendment Bill The quiet but major shift slipped in among the conservation law reforms New plans to encourage private investment in nature Climate law changes have 'clearly struck a nerve' Mercury NZ Ltd v Māori Land Court 2026-NZCA-91.pdf  Ours Not Mines Limited v Hauraki District Council [2026] NZCA 138  Recommendations-for-ethical-engagement-of-IKS-within-the-IPCC Would you like to leave us a comment about our show? send us a note here Visit our podcast website - where you can find more information, including the show notes.  You can also find us on the following platforms: LinkedIn - Liz & CristyBluesky - Liz & CristyOur websites - Liz & Cristy

  5. Apr 17

    Blue carbon - harnessing the power of the ocean for climate and justice - Episode 18 (with Elizabeth Macpherson)

    In this episode, Cristy interviews Liz about her Blue Carbon Futures research program. While it’s been claimed that blue carbon ecosystems can sequester up to 10 times more carbon than terrestrial forests, the legal frameworks needed to protect and restore them are fragmented, contested, and in many cases, underdeveloped. Liz unpacks how ownership disputes, traditional land law boundaries, and colonial legacies create hurdles for Indigenous communities trying to restore and finance these vital wetlands. Priority questions for the next decade of blue carbon scienceTe Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu and Minister of Conservation 2026High Court pauses Ngāi Tahu challenge to Conservation reformsSmiler v Attorney-General [2026] NZHC 375Our Freshwater 2026 Tō Tātou Wai Māori Australasian Centre for Corporate Responsibility v. Santos Ltd UniSuper referred to ASIC over alleged greenwashingACF adds new ground to North West Shelf case MACH Energy Australia v DAMSHEG & AnorNT's McArthur River MineThe Future of Freshwater 3nd Global Citizenship Education HubTransforming food systems through human rightsWould you like to leave us a comment about our show? send us a note here Visit our podcast website - where you can find more information, including the show notes.  You can also find us on the following platforms: LinkedIn - Liz & CristyBluesky - Liz & CristyOur websites - Liz & Cristy

  6. Feb 26

    Fighting for Free Flowing Rivers in Patagonia - Episode 17 (with Pía Weber Salazar)

    In this episode we are joined by lawyer and activist Pía Weber Salazar who discusses her collective work securing legal protections for free flowing rivers in Chile. Pía explains how communities and activist coalitions are working together to protect entire river systems. This work focuses on the implementation of water flow reserves in the Futalefú and Puelo Rivers in Chilean Patagonia, where almost all of the rivers' flow is now protected, despite fierce competition from extractive industries and fragmented regulations. Pía emphasises how legal, community, academic and advocacy efforts can come together to secure better futures for rivers and related communities, and identifies the challenges that lie ahead.  As always, Cristy and Liz round off with recent developments in environmental law, including new developments in climate litigation from Europe, Australia and Aotearoa, the ongoing legal battle against nitrate polution in Canterbury, and large-scale resource management reforms underway in Aotearoa.  Futaleufú and Puelo Become Chile’s First Protected Rivers Towards a Holistic Environmental Flow Regime in Chile Towards durable legal protections for rivers in Chile Evolving rights to (and of) water in Chile No more ministry for the Environment Assessment framework for carbon removals Changes to National Direction under the RMA MACA litigation Freshwater litigation in Canterbury ELI v ECan Climate Clinic Aotearoa v Minister of Energy and Resources Oxford Water Network  Talking about Methods | Frontiers of Sociolegal Studies WATER SHELF PODCAST: "Legal Geographies of Water" by Cristy Clark Asmania et al. vs Holcim - ECCHR: Rising sea levels: An island fights against its demise  ECLI:NL:RBDHA:2026:1347, Rechtbank Den Haag, C/09/659832 / HA ZA 24-53 (English translation) Would you like to leave us a comment about our show? send us a note here Visit our podcast website - where you can find more information, including the show notes.  You can also find us on the following platforms: LinkedIn - Liz & CristyBluesky - Liz & CristyOur websites - Liz & Cristy

  7. Feb 18

    Rights and Resilience in Pacific Climate Advocacy - Episode 16 (with Keakaokawai Varner Hemi, Sereana Naepi, Julia Dehm and Cristy Clark)

    In this episode, Cristy and Liz share Part Two of their LSAANZ Conference special on Rights and Resilience.  The episode brings highlights from the December 2025 Law and Society Association of Australia and New Zealand Conference, held in Ōtautahi Chirstchurch. The theme of the Conference was Rights, Relationality, Resilience, Reciprocity, and this episode focuses on sharing insights and advances from days two and three of the Conference - including book launches, Conference dinner, and Conference closing. The core hilight of the episode is a recording from the second keynote panel presentation on Rights and Resilience with Dr Keakaokawai Varner Hemi (U Waikato), Associate Professor and Rutherford Discovery Fellow Sereana Naepi (U Auckland), and Associate Professor Julia Dehm (La Trobe) beautifully curated by Cristy. This panel centres and champions the leadership of young Pacific leaders taking climate change to the highest court on the planet, and challenges all of us working in universities to make them places deserving of Māori and Pacific scholars, students, and communities. The episode is the second of two episodes bringing Conference highlights, and focuses on the Conference themes of Rights and Resilience, with particular focus on these concepts in the context of climate change, Pacific peoples, and education. Would you like to leave us a comment about our show? send us a note here Visit our podcast website - where you can find more information, including the show notes.  You can also find us on the following platforms: LinkedIn - Liz & CristyBluesky - Liz & CristyOur websites - Liz & Cristy

  8. Jan 30

    Relationality and Reciprocity in River Governance - Episode 15 (with Gerrard Albert, Anne Poelina and Erin O'Donnell)

    In this episode, Cristy and Liz share Part One of their LSAANZ Conference special on Relationality and Reciprocity.  The episode brings highlights from the December 2025 Law and Society Association of Australia and New Zealand Conference, held in Ōtautahi Chirstchurch. The theme of the conference was Rights, Relationality, Resilience, Reciprocity, and this episode focuses on sharing insights and advances from day one of the conference - including the early career workshop, conference opening, reception, and book prizes. The core hilight of the episode is a recording from the first keynote panel presentation on Relationality and Reciprocity with Māori leader Gerrard Albert (Whanganui Iwi), First Nations leader, scholar, activist and artist Professor Anne Poelina (University of Notre Dame and Martuwarra River Council), beautifully curated by Associate Professor Erin O'Donnell (University of Melbourne, Birrarung Council). The episode is the first of two episodes bringing Conference highlights, and focuses on the Conference themes of Relationality and Reciprocity, with particular focus on these concepts in the context of water governance, climate change, and Indigenous sovereignty. Would you like to leave us a comment about our show? send us a note here Visit our podcast website - where you can find more information, including the show notes.  You can also find us on the following platforms: LinkedIn - Liz & CristyBluesky - Liz & CristyOur websites - Liz & Cristy

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Ratings & Reviews

4.5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

In this podcast, coming to you from the end of the world, Elizabeth Macpherson and Cristy Clark share developments and insights about how law is being used to support outcomes for the environment and those who depend on it - i.e. everyone.

Information

  • Creator
    Elizabeth Macpherson and Cristy Clark
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    22
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Law at the End of the World
  • Show Website
    Law at the End of the World

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