Into Every Life, A Little Rain Must Fall -- Vancouver, Part Deux!

"It rained today, it rained alot, it rained in drippy drops..."
- a nursery rhyme taught to young children in Vancouver.

Yes, the weather has been terrible. And cold! This morning I heard on the news that it's been the coldest/wettest June on record. Usually, May and June in Vancouver are spectacular, with sunny skies and temperatures in the high 70s and 80s. But not this year. Of course, there is nothing more Canadian than talking about the weather. And while easterners natter on about the white stuff, it’s the wet stuff that gets tongues flapping on British Columbia’s wet - I mean west - coast. Well we've had lots to talk about this past week, as it has been wet, wet, wet. But no worries. While perhaps a little soggy, everyone is doing well. The Los Angelenos have fully adjusted. I think I even saw one student scoff at a tourist who had bothered opening an umbrella after a few measly drops of water fell.

And despite the weather, the Program is going quite well. The Program has hit its midpoint. Yesterday, a new flight of professors joined us and started teaching the second half of the program. Leaving were Professors Williams (SW) and Paterson (UBC). Joining us were Professor Kristen Boon from Seton Hall Law School, Professor Karin Mickelson from the University of British Columbia Faculty of Law, and Professor Trevor Morrison from Columbia Law School. All three are nationally-recognized scholars in their fields. In the classes, students are discussing cutting edge issues in criminal, constitutional, and environmental law.

Since my last post, the Program has had a few more activities. On Friday, Professor Wil Burns from Santa Clara Law School came to speak to the program participants. Prof. Burns is a Senior Fellow at the Center for Global Law & Policy at the Santa Clara University School of Law in Santa Clara. He also serves as Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of International Wildlife Law & Policy and Co-Chair of the International Environmental Law Interest Group of the American Society of International Law. His expertise is on climate change. On Friday, he talked to the students about possible international litigation through the UN Fish Stocks Agreement to spur action on climate change initiatives. The talk was well-attended, and started off nicely our mid-day lecture series.

This week, small groups of students will be visiting local Vancouver law firms. Yesterday, we went to the Farris firm, a well-known Vancouver law firm, and spoke with Ludmila Herbst, a partner there. Ms. Herbst spoke to the students about her experiences at law school, her professional background, and what it's like to practice law in Vancouver. Today, we will visit the law firm Lawson & Lundell, and speak with one of their partners, Gordon Weatherill. It promises to be an interesting visit. This weekend many of the students are planning to head to Whistler to do some white-river rafting, zip-treking, and mountain biking. Hopefully some pics will be posted.

Well that's all for me now. I'm looking forward to Lesley's post, which will get you real scoop on the ground. Until next week...