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5. Furthermore, even these impressive data may understate the actual increase because many schools
have responded to the increased demand for environmental courses by hiring adjuncts to teach additional
environmental courses. These courses and faculty are not included in AALS data because the AALS
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directory includes only full-time faculty. Moreover, information about the number of environmental
courses or teachers does not reflect the perceived increases in the sizes of environmental classes.
6.The most recent surge of interest in environmental law appears to be the product of several factors.
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Environmental regulation is not only continuing its rapid growth but also assuming considerable
importance in new contexts, such as real estate, insurance, and international business transactions. A new
generation of students reared at a time of increased environmental consciousness feels strongly about the
100 importance of protecting the environment. Hugh Marbury, a law student at Vanderbilt Universiry,
describes environmental protection as «a civic responsibility and the right thing to do» Paul White, a law
student at the University of South Carolina, states that environmental law was a «logical choice» for him
105 because his parents taught him to have a strong sense of «respect for nature and life». At a time when
employment opportunities are shrinking in several other areas of law, many students believe that
environmental law will provide not only a meaningful job but also one with prospects for a bright future.
110 Martin LaLonde, a University of Michigan law student, explains that he «became interested in
environmental law because I wanted to do a job that was meaningful». Mary Raivel, a University of
115 Maryland law student currently working at the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), says that she
was attracted to environmental law because it «seemed the best way to combine my interest in law with my
concern for the well-being of future generations».
7. Many professors believe that the job market, rather than increased student altruism, explains much of
120 the surge of student interest in environmemal law. Because environmental law has been one of the fastest
growing legal specialties, it is attracting some students more interested in jobs than in saving the world.
Ronald Rosenberg of the Marshall-Wythe School of Law at the College of William & Mary notes that his
125 «students are immensely sophisticated about what law firms want». Many who plan careers in business law
now realize that environmental law has become important in broad areas of commercial practice. As a
result, a broader cross-section of students is showing up in environmental law courses. Randy Abate, a
130 professor at Vermont Law School, notes that students there «no longer automatically choose the
environmental side» in environmental moot court competitions.
8. Although students are pleased that environmental regula tion has increased employment opportunities
135 for lawyers, they also recognize that an increase in environmental lawyers is not the answer to
environmental problems. Fred Turner, an Indiana University law student who served as director of the
1993 NAELS conference, observes that «the best thing would be if we didn't have to have environmental
140 law at all-if people were smart and compassionate enough» to prevent environmental problems from
occurring. Noting that it is «unrealistic» to think that environmental lawyers can «save the world», Martin
LaLonde observes, «I'd like to try» to at least point the world in the right direction».
II Changes in Teaching
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l. In response to the enormous increase in student interest, significant changes are occurring in the
teaching of environmental law. In 1989, Joseph Sax of the University of Michigan, one of the pioneer
teachers of environmental law, surveyed the field and found widespread frustration that environmental
150 was law increasingly divorced from the concerns that inspired the environmental movement. Although
most of the factors that contributed to Sax's pessimism have not fundamentally changed, environmental
law professors appear decidedly more upbeat today. They concede that the field has become vast and
155 overwhelmingly complex, but they are generally pleased with their subject's unprecedented popularity, and
many delight in responding to its pedagogic challenges. Frank Grad of Columbia University finds teaching
environmen tal law «enormously challenging», but he does not share any sense of «tired blood». He
160 believes the field «has now reached maturity», «is thriving», and has made enormous contributions to the
development of administrative and public-interest law.
2. A source of some professors' frustration has been the rapid growth in the breadth and complexity of
165 environmental law, which shows no sign of abating. After mastering NEPA, the initial generation of
environmental law professors was repeatedly forced to tackle new and more complex regulatory statutes.