Jonas Ebbesson
About me
I am Professor of Environmental Law (LL.D.), former Dean of the Faculty of Law (2012-17), and Director of Stockholm Environmental Law and Policy Centre, at Stockholm University. I was a member of the Compliance Committee of the UNECE Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters (Aarhus Convention) 2005-2021 and the Chair of the Committee 2011-2021. I am member of the Swedish Academy of Letters, History and Antiquities.
My research essentially focuses on transboundary dimensions of environmental law. I have written substantially about legal aspects on public interests, public participation, access to justice and human rights in environmental matters. This includes comparative work on access to justice in environmental matters in the EU, and studies on the notions of public participation and environmental impact assessments in international law. I have also conducts research on the responsibility for transnational corporations for harm to health and the environment, on justice aspects of environmental law, and on law and social-ecological resilience. Currently, I am also working on the UN Sustainable Development Goals and international law, and on climate change lawsuits.
I am direcor for the Master programme in environmental law at Stockholm University, which was re-opened in 2021.
I have acted as consultant or expert for various governmental and intergovernmental bodies, such as the Swedish Ministry of the Environment, the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the Swedish Ministry of Finance, the Swedish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), the Swedish Council of Nuclear Waste (Kasam), the Nordic Council of Ministers, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). Among the issues dealt with as consultant or expert are foreign direct investment and environment protection; trade and environment; environmental protection in marine areas (oil pollution and nature conservation); environmental impact assessment procedures; public participation; transboundary litigation; and compliance control in environmental law. I have been a legal expert in the preparation of environmental legislation (Serbia and Vietnam). These activities involved drafting of legislation, legal analyses and organisational matters. In addition, I have been consultant for various environmental and development assistance NGOs, law firms, and environmental consultants; and legal representative before Swedish courts and the European Court of Human Rights on matters relating to the environment and health.
