3 credits | Listen to an interview with John Cronin
In this course, students will examine the history of American environmental law and the development of contemporary environmental policy, using Hudson River issues to illustrate their practical application. There will be an emphasis on the original goals and purposes of major statutes and policies and a critical review of their successes and failures.
Students will learn the practical aspects of decision-making and citizen participation through simulation exercises culminating in a mock public hearing on a key environmental issue that examines the role of law, economics, science, technology and advocacy in the execution of policy.
John Cronin is known internationally for a career of nearly four decades dedicated to water and environmental affairs. He is best known for 17 years as Hudson Riverkeeper, inspiring a legacy of more than 200 Waterkeeper programs throughout the world. For his accomplishments, Time Magazine named him a “Hero for the Planet.”
As the first Beacon Institute Fellow at Clarkson University and a senior fellow at Pace University, Cronin’s current work is directed at water policy reform, teaching environmental policy and politics, and training the next generation of environmental leaders. As an advocate, lobbyist, legislative and congressional aide, commercial fisherman, author and filmmaker, Cronin has tackled issues ranging from US Army involvement in Love Canal to citizen law enforcement to the decline of commercial fisheries. He was the lead environmental negotiator for the New York City Watershed Agreement, the author of and lead lobbyist for three state environmental laws, and headed the investigation of more than one hundred water pollution cases.
With Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., he co-wrote The Riverkeepers, with an introduction by Vice President Al Gore, and wrote and produced the film, The Last Rivermen, named an outstanding documentary of the year by the Motion Picture Academy Foundation.
As the founding director of Beacon Institute, Cronin launched initiatives in advanced technology development for real-time monitoring of rivers and estuaries in collaboration with Clarkson University and IBM, as well as a National Science Foundation-funded STEM education program for teachers and students.
Cronin is the recipient of an honorary juris doctor from Pace University School of Law, the American Fisheries Society’s William E. Ricker Award, the Thomas Berry Environmental Award, and a national Jefferson Award, called “the Nobel Prize for public service.” The Wall Street Journal called him “A unique presence on America’s major waterways.” The Knight-Ridder newspapers praised him as a “hero in one of the great success stories of the modern environmental movement.”
