Volume 1, Issue 2 - November 10, 2025
Welcome to Issue 2 of the Renewable Energy and Climate Talk newsletter (“R.E.A.C.T. by PECC”), brought to you by the Pace Energy and Climate Center (“PECC”). This issue offers a global perspective on emerging energy and climate policies. Readers will find updates on international developments, highlights from major global events, and in-depth legal analyses of international climate and energy policy, including its intersections with U.S. law.
PECC is committed to engaging with the Haub Law network and celebrating members who have made notable contributions to the legal field. These spotlights not only recognize their professional achievements but also foster connections between practitioners and scholars. In this issue, we highlight alumnus Christopher Bloch, Haub Law ’10. Additionally, Elizabeth J. Mackay, CFA, Esq., Director and Counsel at the Vander Weele Group, LLC, has authored a piece, States React to Environmental Policy’s About-Face.
PECC Energy and Climate Law Scholars Articles
Brazil as a Sustainable AI Hub in the Global South: A Comparative International Law Analysis
- Providing an insightful examination of Brazil's renewable energy and AI potential. The country's abundant natural resources and leadership in clean energy have attracted significant interest from Big Tech companies aiming to develop green AI. Despite notable regulatory gaps, the article highlights Brazil's potential to become a global hub for substainable AI innovation.
The Forgotten Half of Climate Justice: What COP30 Must Remember About the Ocean
- Highlights the important role that oceans play, the international policies and obligations they create to prevent harm to the marine environment amid escalating climate change impacts, the push for mandatory ocean protections, and the significance of marine ecosystems.
The Absence of International Renewable Energy ‘Hard Law’
- Explores "hard" and "soft" international law using the ICJ Advisory Opinion on environmental protection for present and future generations. The solutions provided by international law are imposed on sovereign States, limiting their sovereignty but opening the door to progress, while hard law versus soft law guides and influences discourse on climate change issues such as renewable energy, though binding agreements remain notably lacking on the international stage.
The Future of Cap-and-Trade Markets Following the ICJ Advisory Opinion on Climate Obligations
- Explores the cap-and-trade system, the role of States in fulfilling their obligations under the ICJ opinion to protect climate systems and prevent GHG harm, and how these duties intersect with cap-and-trade as a tool for meeting climate obligations.
From the Courts to the Commission: How U.S. Youth are Globalizing the Fight for Climate Justice
- Closely examines Juliana v. United States and the constitutional challenges raised by the petitioners, highlighting their relentless and compelling pursuit towards recognizing a right to a "stable climate system".
Announcing PECC's first group of Energy & Climate Law Scholars
The Pace Energy and Climate Center (“PECC") is thrilled to announce the 2025–26 Energy and Climate Law Scholars: Isabela Vasconcelos Chelou, Tamika Thomas-Murray, Samirah Aziz, Sophie Bacas, Hannah Frizzell, Thomas Glawson, Ashley Hipnar, Frank Anthony Mattimoe, and Kyle Shepherd.
Highlights from PECC Events
Stay updated on the latest developments shaping the future of energy and environmental law by reading about the takeaways from various events PECC's Energy and Climate Law Scholars have been attending.
- IUCN World Conservation Congress
- On October 9–15, PECC Executive Director, Michael Hamersky, joined several Haub Law professors, alumni, and students in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, to convene the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (“IUCN”) World Conservation Congress (“WCC”).
Upcoming Events:
- 11/10–12: Land Use Leadership Alliance Training - Hudson Valley, New York, U.S.
- 11/9–16: 2025 United Nations Climate Change Conference COP30 - Belem, Brazil
- 11/12–13: A Mandate for All: the Legal and Civic Imperative to Confront the Climate Emergency Conference - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | New York, U.S. | Online
- PECC is honored to participate in a prominent international event, promoted by FGV Direito Rio, the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University, and the World Commission on Environmental Law. Executive Director Michael Hamersky will moderate the Networking to Magnify Effectiveness panel, while Executive Board member Carington Lowe will serve as the youth commentator for Corporate Climate Action: Accountability and the Path to Net Zero.
- 12/11: The Future of Utility Regulation 2025 - Managing Competition Symposium - New York City, New York, U.S.
Upcoming Public Comment Filings
- 11/10: Comments due on Upstate and Downstate Regional Residential Weatherization Proposals in Case 25-M-0248, addressing 2026–30 non-LMI energy efficiency and building electrification portfolios.
R.E.A.C.T. by PECC Podcast
Newest Episode: EPA Proposes to Rescind Obama's 2009 Greenhouse Gas Endangerment Finding
PECC joins Haub Law students in submitting a public comment to deny U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (“EPA”) proposal to rescind Obama's 2009 Greenhouse Gas Endangerment Finding ("the Finding"). EPA has proposed to rescind the Finding for all greenhouse gas emission standards for light, medium, and heavy-duty vehicles that served as the legal basis for regulation under the Clean Air Act. The proposal, published on August 1, 2025, is a significant policy shift by the Trump administration, and if finalized and upheld by the courts, could lead to the repeal of numerous climate-related regulations.
R.E.A.C.T. by PECC Newsletter Curators:
Frances Gothard J.D. '26 | Carington Lowe J.D. '26
Volume 1, Issue 1 - October 8, 2025
Welcome to the first edition of the Renewable Energy and Climate Talk Newsletter ("R.E.A.C.T."), brought to you by the Pace Energy and Climate Center ("PECC"). R.E.A.C.T. is curated to provide its readers with updates on energy and climate developments, spotlighting key events both in New York and internationally, and acting as a source for legal scholarship and recent publications shaping the field. In each issue, you will also find original pieces written by our Energy and Climate Law Scholars exploring emerging topics and highlighting major climate and energy events.
I am beyond excited to welcome you to the first edition of R.E.A.C.T. by PECC. I was appointed to serve as the Executive Director of the Pace Energy and Climate Center on the promise to return PECC to its student oriented scholarly roots. I look forward to using this newsletter to highlight the incredible work of the number one environmental law program in the nation’s talented students and to highlight PECC’s work on the clean energy transition and the impact this transition will have on vulnerable communities.
Each R.E.A.C.T. by PECC newsletter will feature Pace Haub Law students contributing articles on energy and climate matters important to them. Additionally, expect to find contributions from energy law practitioners and thought leaders discussing the important energy and climate matters of the moment. R.E.A.C.T. by PECC will also include access to PECC’s comments in energy proceedings and provide readers with a list of upcoming deadlines we think are important to you. Finally, R.E.A.C.T. by PECC will include a curated events calendar that highlights important conferences or galas taking place in the coming weeks. Be sure to keep up with R.E.A.C.T. by PECC, where we harness the new energy of future leaders to address the climate crisis now.
PECC Executive Director, Professor Michael Hamersky, Advances Climate Action on the Global Stage
Executive Director, Michael Hamersky, will be attending the IUCN World Conservation Congress 2025 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, and the 2025 United Nations Climate Change Conference to be held in Belem, Brazil (“COP30”), on behalf of PECC. With the assistance of PECC fellow Akinola Afolarin and PECC extern Mercè Martí i Expositio, PECC has prepared Climate Crisis Advisory Opinions: An Urgent Call for Swift Action at COP30, which proposes strategies to compel States to implement laws in response to the recent climate change advisory opinion.
Announcing the PECC 2025–26 Executive Board
The Pace Energy and Climate Center (“PECC") is thrilled to announce the 2025–26 Executive Board: Frances Gothard, Carington Lowe, and Kenneth Sumter, three exceptional Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University students committed to advancing PECC’s mission and outreach.
Recently Submitted Public Comments
- Submitted Comments on the 2025 Draft New York State Energy Plan to Persuade New York Not to Abandon its Climate Goals.
- Submitted Comments to the EPA Urging it to Abandon Reconsideration of the 2009 Endangerment Finding.
- Submitted Comments to the NJDEP Requesting to Deny Northeast Supply Enhancement Pipeline Expansion.
Upcoming Public Comment Filings
- 10/26: Comments due on Utility Stage 2 Design Studies for UTEN Pilots in Case 22-M-0429, focused on pilot design plans under the Utility Thermal Energy Network and Jobs Act ("UTENJA") of 2022.
- 11/9: Comments due on Upstate and Downstate Regional Residential Weatherization Proposals in Case 25-M-0248, addressing 2026–2030 non-LMI energy efficiency and building electrification portfolios.
PECC Energy and Climate Law Scholars Articles
New York Renewable Energy Storage: Futuristic Success or Ongoing Injustice?
- Examines New York State's rapid growth of battery energy storage systems ("BESS"), highlighting environmental justice concerns such as safety risks and disproportionate impacts on disadvantaged communities. The essay also explores regulatory gaps and proposes solutions to promote more equitable BESS development.
A Bright Future and a Dark Legacy: The Future of Nuclear Energy and Waste Disposal in New York
- Highlights New York's efforts to develop nuclear waste recycling technologies and regulatory frameworks for safely managing nuclear byproducts, alongside Governor Hochul's directive for NYPA to construct a zero-emission advanced nuclear power plant in Upstate New York.
When Washington Stalls, States Power Forward
- Discusses existing federal energy and climate policy and highlights how shifts in administration and judicial precedent have created an unstable regulatory environment. Also emphasizes the critical role of states in leading environmental and energy outcomes that can offset and outlast federal fluctuations.
Highlights from PECC Events
Stay updated on the latest developments shaping the future of energy and environmental law by reading about the takeaways from various events PECC's Energy and Climate Law Scholars have been attending. This edition includes the following four events:
- Wind Power and Battery Storage at NYSBA Environmental & Energy Law Section
- Highlighting the events from NYSBA's 2025 Fall Meeting and key legal discussions, including evolving permitting challenges, key renewable energy projects, and expectations to come. Read more here:
- Earth Law Center ECO Summit
- Exploring the paradigm shift towards recognizing personhood rights for nature as a foundation for ecological justice. Read more here:
- Causeway & COPx: Catalyst for Global Climate Change
- Discussion on how reframing climate action as an opportunity for resilience, justice, and innovation is a global remedy to the issue of climate change. Read more here:
- Accelerating Nuclear Innovation with AI
- Illustrates how artificial intelligence is reshaping the future of nuclear energy and regulatory processes. Read more here:
Upcoming Events
- 10/8–15: IUCN World Conservation Congress in Abu Dhabi
- 10/22: NEEP’s Heating Electrification Workshop in Princeton, NJ
- 10/22–23: ACE NY Fall 2025 Conference in Albany, NY
- 10/29: 2025 NYLCV Westchester Cocktail Party in Dobbs Ferry, NY
- 10/27–29: Land Use Leadership Alliance Training - Southern Tier
- 11/10–12: Land Use Leadership Alliance Training - Hudson Valley
- 11/9–16: 2025 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Belem, Brazil
- 12/11: The Future of Utility Regulation 2025 - Managing Competition Symposium - NYC
R.E.A.C.T. by PECC Podcast
Premiere Episode: Introduces PECC and its priorities in the coming months.
R.E.A.C.T. by PECC Newsletter Curators:
Frances Gothard J.D. '26 | Carington Lowe J.D. '26