Academic centers

Stanford’s Sustainability School: A Good Model?

There are pros and cons, but it makes sense to bring the university org. chart into the 21st century.

In my last post, I wrote about universities like Stanford that are creating new programs in sustainability.  Stanford’s move may inspire others to follow.  There are pros and cons, but it seems inevitable that the organization of universities will ultimately take account of one of the biggest problems facing humanity. Administrative reorganizations, whether in government, …

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Stanford and Beyond

Organizing Universities Around Sustainability

In May, Stanford grabbed headlines by announcing a billion dollar gift to launch a new School of Sustainability. There hasn’t been much written about the details of Stanford’s effort, or about what other schools are doing along similar lines. There’s little in the way of systematic information, but there does seem to be a lot …

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‘The Centers Cannot Hold’ . . . At Least, Not in North Carolina

Attack on academic freedom? Or misunderstood management effort?

Both the NY Times and the Washington Post have reported on a recommendation that the North Carolina Board of Governors close several university centers. [Update: the recommendations were adopted by the Board a week later.] There are strong allegations that this is part of a conservative attack on the university system. There are certainly grounds to suspect …

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California’s Proposition 8 overturned – victory for gay marriage, and example of the impact of law school-based policy research

Perhaps everything in the world might be related in some way to climate change.  Perhaps not.  I’m having a hard time seeing how this topic in particular relates to climate change.  But it does relate to our blog, in that the decision illustrates well the importance and relevance of law school-based academic research centers — …

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