Calling all ‘greenies’ with creative talents

1. Are you  interested in environmental issues?

2. Do you also have artistic or creative tendencies?

3. Are you outgoing and willing to mix with people from different countries?

4. Are you an ELSA member?

5. Are you able to travel within the Schengen zone?

6. Are you aged 18 – 25?

7. Will your exams be finished by the first week of June?

If you are able to answer yes to at least FOUR of these questions, you may be interested in applying to participate in the following youth project.

ECO ART FOR A BETTER WORLD

Dates: Saturday 2^nd – Sunday 10^th June 2012
Place: Rezekne, Latvia

Partners (each group will send 5 people) –

•    Ecotourism association ECOLAND – LATVIA
•    Joint associazione di promozione sociale – ITALY
•    Tekkekoy Ilce Milli Egitim Mudurluru – TURKEY
•    Eurocircle – FRANCE
•    English Law Students’ Association – UK

Summary of the project:

The main idea behind the Youth Exchange “Eco Art For a Better World” is the promotion of harmonious life with the environment among young people coming from countries from different parts of Europe. The group will be based in the country side near Rezekne.  They will spend 9 days exploring and exchanging ideas about the topics of sustainable development and environmental protection, promoting common international youth initiatives protecting the environment. Young people will work in 3 Eco art groups: Eco Theatre, Eco Visual arts and Eco Crafts. From natural artwork to theatre, these workshops are designed to deepen the connection to nature and ourselves in a creative way. The problem of pollution, garbage waste and global warming are nowadays more and more real.

The exchange will comprise 25 young people (18 -25) from Latvia, UK, Italy, Turkey and France to discuss and understand better the topic and campaign for a change and ecological reverse.

At the end of the project, results of the workshops (flyers, posters, videos etcs) will be presented / performed to a city audience in Riga, the capital.

ELSA will send 5 participants. Any selected participant will be partly subsidised through an EU grant attained via the Youth in Action (YiA) Programme. YiA aims to inspire a sense of active European citizenship, solidarity and tolerance among young Europeans and to involve them in shaping the Union’s future. It promotes mobility within and beyond the EU’s borders, non-formal learning and intercultural dialogue by means of projects and exchanges set up and run by young people themselves.

PARTICIPANTS

• Ms Gulsen Akyol (Kingston)
• Mr Kireth Kalirai (King’s College)
• Mr Rhodri Lewis (LSE)
• Ms Sakina Jaffer (Kingston)

1 PLACE AVAILABLE

Cost

• UPDATE (18/5/12): Although we have one place left the direct airfares are now too high for us to subsidise applicants fully. 
• *£250
• + 15 euros payable in Latvia to cover the return journey from Riga to Rezekne (about 4 hours each way!!)

*The fee includes return flights, all meals, accommodation in Rezekne (log cabin), accommodation in Riga (city centre hostel).

Accommodation

You will stay in traditional wooden houses in a forest adjacent to a lake. Bring your swimming costumes and towels. The rooms are mostly, twins and triples but you will share with people of the same sex. Meals will be cooked for you in the main house. All activities during the first week will take place in this location. The final two days will be spent in the capital Riga (almost 4 hours by bus). In Riga you will stay in the city centre in a youth hostel.

If you are interested in the above project AND you are able to travel to Latvia in June (check your exam schedule!), please send an Excpression of Interest / Application to: info@elsalondon.org. Remember to put “Eco Art for a Better World” in the subject heading.

All applications / Expressions of Interest must answer all the following questions.

1. sex (male / female)
2. First Name, Last or Family Name
3. Date of Birth (dd/mm/yyyy)
4. Current age
5. University and current level of education (postgrad / undergrad?)
6. Mobile number
7.  Citizenship / Nationality (i.e. which passport / travel document will you use to travel to Latvia?)
8. Do you need a visa to travel to Latvia (Latvia is in the Schengen zone, EU citizens and some other countries do not need visas)
9. Are you a current ELSA member or alumnus? (y/n) Please provide card number, if applicable.
10. Are you red listed for failing to attend other ELSA events or for non payment of fees? (y/n)
11. Have you participated in any other ELSA events, trips or summer projects. If yes, please list.
12. Which particular skills can you bring to Eco Art for a Better World?
13. Which other environmental activities have you been involved in?
14. What size t-shirt do you wear (s,m,l,xl)?
15. MOTIVATION
Please write  few sentences about why you are applying for this particular project and what you  hope to gain from it.

Enterprise 21 (E21) is an international management training course specifically aimed towards  young people involved in youth organisations who wish to know more about organising international youth projects and the Youth in Action programme. ELSA has two places reserved.

E21 is sponsored by the Luxembourg National Agency (for youth affairs) but is hosted by the Georgian Academy for Peace and Development and will take place in the Black Sea holiday resort of  Kobuleti.

ELSA wishes to organise international events next year where we can invite students from other countries – possibly a simulation (e.g. model EU, model UN) a human rights project (e.g. moot, summer school) or a youth exchange focussing on a topic of concern to young people in several different countries. Obviously, to host any large event in London  takes a lot of planning and a lot of money. Whilst we will have to find corporate sponsors, there is also some partial funding available from the EU via the Youth in Action Programme (YiA).

YiA is a great scheme which aims to encourage mobility among young Europeans by supporting international projects. However, there are specific criteria and it is necessary to give a lot of thought and planning to the proposed projects before submitting the grant application. This training in Georgia will equip 2 ELSA members with the necessary competences and skills to write a project and to organise an event. If you are not currently a member or your membership has expired, you will need to join ELSA.

EASTERN PARTNERSHIP YOUTH WINDOW

There is additional YiA funding available for any project which includes young people from the East. The European Law Students’ Association has a presence in Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia. There are also other student / youth organisations in these countries which support democracy, rule of law and/or human rights. Any of these groups would make suitable partners for an ELSA project.

Application

You must be available to travel to Georgia 26 June – 4 July and you must be committed to helping ELSA to organise an international event during the coming academic year. This means you must be in London during 2012/13.

We would prefer applications from people who have already got some experience of  being on a committee or project management BUT because of the extremely tight deadline (Friday 18 May), we will consider any applicant who is able to demonstrate commitment, enthusiasm and a willingness to learn.

If selected, you will be subsidised to attend the training. This means there will be no cost for accommodation, meals, materials etc. You will have to pay for your flight BUT will be able to claim a partial refund after successful completion of the training (please keep tickets / boarding passing and receipts). This refund will be paid in euros into your bank account.

Finally, If you are not currently a member or your membership has expired, you will need to join ELSA.

Download more information about Enterprise 21 (E21) here

UPDATE (18/5/2012)

Participants selected:

• Ben Montgomery – King’s College London
• Zain Alatas – City University

The European Movement and the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung

The EM-KAS Briefing aims to inform members of the financial services industry, policy experts, EU public affairs practitioners and journalists about the current sovereign debt crisis and policy initiatives to return the EU on a path towards growth.

The panel discussion will feature:

• Steffen Kampeter MP, Parliamentary State Secretary, German Finance Ministry.
• Julian Callow, Managing Director and Chief European Economist, Barclays Capital.
• Professor Iain Begg, European Institute, London School of Economics.

If you would like to attend please send an e-mail to lena.donner@euromove.org.uk with your full name and organisation.

Date: Wednesday, 16 May 2012.

Venue: Barclays Bank HQ, 1 Churchill Place, Canary Wharf, E14 5HP

Time: Wednesday 16 May 2012

18.00 – 18.15 Registration (please arrive early to allow time for the security check)

18.15 – 19.30 Panel Discussion

19.30 – 20.30 Reception (kindly offered by Barclays Bank)

Play your cards

The main objective of the project is to foster young people’s active citizenship and activism and support young people in building their own future with their own hands. The project will focus on non formal learning / learning by doing. The Italian organisers have planned a game-based agenda during which will explore daily life experiences and how young people can become actively involved in their local communities or in wide societal projects. The exchange will also seek to explore and promote relations between young people from different European countries, as well as the relation of young people with NGOs and institutions.

Cost

This project is subsidised with a grant from Youth in Action. Total cost is likely to be about £180 (£155 members). This depends on the Euro exchange rate. The fee includes: flights, accommodation, meals, the full programme plus any materials needed.

Please answer the following questions

The following youth project is organised by Útilapu Hálózat,  a Hungarian civil society organisation.

If you are available from Saturday 26 May – Saturday 2nd June 2012 (please check your exam timetable!) and you  have a Chinese background, you are invited to participate in a Youth Exchange which will be held in Budapest, Hungary this summer. This youth exchange is funded with an EU grant which means that accommodation, meals and materials are included. There is no participation cost but you will need to book your own flight to Budapest. You will get a partial refund for your travel once the exchange is completed.

DATE: 21 – 28 July

Objectives:

Profile of the participants

How to apply

Travel expenses

Accommodation

Enrolment fee

Thomas Pickering, former US Ambassador to the United Nations, will be speaking on the subject of ‘The US and Iran: Challenges and Opportunities’.

The lecture is part of the Fulbright Distinguished Lecture Series on International Relations, in association with the US-UK Fulbright Commission, the United States Embassay and Lois Roth Endowment.

The lecture will take place on Thursday 10 May 2012 at 6.00pm at King’s College,  Strand Campus in the Safra Lecture Theatre. It  will be followed by a reception in Chapters for all guests.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER

On May 27, 1997, Thomas R. Pickering was sworn in as Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs. He holds the personal rank of Career Ambassador, the highest in the United States Foreign Service. Prior to becoming Under Secretary, he served as the President of the Eurasia Foundation, a Washington-based organization which makes small grants and loans in the states of the former Soviet Union in support of democracy and economic reform. He previously served as Ambassador to the Russian Federation from May 1993 until November 1996. He also served as Ambassador to India from 1992-1993, Permanent Representative to the United Nations from 1989-1992, Ambassador to Israel from 1985-1988, to El Salvador from 1983-1985, and to Nigeria from 1981-1983. He was Assistant Secretary for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs from 1978 to 1981. From 1974 until 1978, Ambassador Pickering was the United States Ambassador to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.

Ambassador Pickering was born on November 5, 1931, in Orange, New Jersey. He received a Bachelor’s Degree in 1953 from Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine, cum laude, with high honors in history. He is a member of Phi Beta Kappa. In 1954, he attended the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and received a Master’s Degree. He was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to the University of Melbourne and received a second Master’s Degree in 1956. From 1956 to 1959, he was on active duty in the United States Navy and later served in the Naval Reserve to the grade of Lieutenant Commander. Between 1959 and 1961, Ambassador Pickering served in the Bureau of Intelligence and Research of the State Department, in the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, and from 1962-1964 in Geneva as political adviser to the U.S. Del. 18 Nation Disarmament Conference.

Following his assignment to Geneva, Ambassador Pickering studied Swahili at the Foreign Service Institute in Washington and was assigned in 1965 to Zanzibar. In 1967, he became Deputy Chief of Mission in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania, and in 1969, he returned to Washington to become Deputy Director of the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs. From 1973 to 1974, he was Executive Secretary of the Department of State and Special Assistant to Secretary Rogers and Secretary Kissinger.

In 1983 and in 1986, Ambassador Pickering won the Distinguished Presidential Award and in 1996, the Department’s Distinguished Service Award. In 1984, he received an honorary doctorate-in-laws degree from Bowdoin College. Subsequently, he has been similarly honored by ten other universities. He is a member of the International Institute of Strategic Studies and the Council on Foreign Relations. His foreign languages are French, Spanish, Swahili, Arabic and Hebrew.

On Wednesday 23rd May 2012, King’s College School of Law will host the launch of UKELA‘s major project report – ‘The State of Environmental Law in 2011-12′ – in the Edmond J Safra Lecture Theatre, King’s Building, Strand Campus at 5:45pm (registration will commence at 5.15pm).

Refreshments will be available at registration and drinks/nibbles will be served once the speakers have concluded.

UKELA members from all backgrounds and industry contacts have helped to inform the findings of this report, which aims to investigate and to improve the quality of environmental legislation throughout the United Kingdom.  The report is the result of a major UKELA project spanning three years, which has also involved research collaboration with the Dickson Poon School of Law at King’s College London and the Centre for Business Relationships, Accountability, Sustainability and Society (BRASS) at Cardiff University.

The project team will present its key findings at this evening event.  The head of the Better Regulation team at DEFRA, Steven Gleave, will also present a response to the report, drawing on recent developments relating to the Government’s Red Tape Challenge on environmental regulation.

Students are welcome at the report launch presentation as complimentary guests and can RSVP by emailing lawevents@kcl.ac.uk.

Further details about the event can be found here: Event Summary.

The annual conference is a unique opportunity for presenters and participants to exchange ideas and knowledge on contemporary legal issues and all postgraduate students, staff and other interested parties are warmly invited.

The event will host presentations from postgraduate students across the UK and Europe. There will be ten subject sessions covering a range of areas: Intellectual Property; Arbitration; Commercial Law; International Law; Medical Law; Criminal Law; EU Law; Refugee & Asylum Law; Human Rights; and Constitutional Law & Legal History. Please see the full timetable (attached) for further details.

There will also be a Poster Presentation session and a ‘Soapbox Session’, which is new for 2012. The Plenary Session is titled: ‘After the PhD: Academia or a Legal Career?’

Register online now: http://eshop.qmul.ac.uk/browse/extra_info.asp?compid=1&modid=2&prodid=214&de ptid=34&catid=1

Please note that the deadline for online registration is 17th May 2012. The registration fee is £15 and includes refreshments and lunch during the day, as well as a drinks reception in the evening.

Download  Full Conference Timetable

Directions to the venue can be found here http://www.law.qmul.ac.uk/docs/events/73207.pdf  Should you require any further information about the conference, please do not hesitate to send us an e-mail: law-gradconference@qmul.ac.uk.

We hope to see you at the Conference!

Helene Tyrrell & Ana Alba Betancourt (PhD Representatives & Conference Organisers)
Prof. Alan Dignam & Dr. Stavros Brekoulakis (Directors of Graduate Studies)

Tuesday 15 May 2012, 2pm to 5.30pm

Title: Double jeopardy, ‘ne bis in idem’ or ‘autrefois acquit/convict’: lost in translation in the European Union?

Speakers: PROFESSOR JOHN SPENCER, Cambridge; DR. ROBIN LOOF, Barrister, QEB Hollis Whiteman Chambers; NICK VAMOS, UK Judicial co-operation Unit; PROFESSOR ESTELLA BAKER, University of Sheffield.

Website:  www.sas.ac.uk/events/view/11292

Venue: IALS.  To register email:  IALS.Events@sas.ac.uk.  Admission Free, All Welcome.

(Organised in association with the European Criminal Law Association (UK).)