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Should the Commonwealth Caribbean Abolish Appeals to the Privy Council?

In the Commonwealth Caribbean, final appeals were traditionally heard by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, or ‘Her Majesty in Council’. Some islands have now replaced the Privy Council with the Caribbean Court of Justice as their highest court. The choice of highest court remains a controversial political issue in the Caribbean. While the Privy Council has deep colonial and imperial roots, it has sometimes been an important safeguard for fundamental rights: what are the pros and cons?

London’s Lost Rivers: The Hackney Brook and other North West Passages

Iain Sinclair takes a look at the rivers of London...

The Plane Forest: Does the City have the Right Trees?

The City of London actively seeks to make the most...

Human Rights in the UK and the Commonwealth Caribbean

The Human Rights Act 1998, which incorporated the European Convention on Human Rights into domestic law, was a landmark moment in British legal history, with quasi-constitutional protection for fundamental rights. Meanwhile, the national constitutions of the Commonwealth Caribbean contain fundamental rights provisions which are often inspired by, but diverge significantly from, the European Convention. This lecture will examine the judicial protection of human rights in the UK and the Commonwealth Caribbean, and will confront its shortcomings and vulnerabilities.

Exploring the Deep Sea

The Deep Sea is Earth’s last great frontier. After almost 150 years of exploration and research we understand it is deep, dark and definitely different; but there remain large gaps in our knowledge that hinder progress in sustainable management of this vast system. New technology – from manned submersibles, to satellite measurements, acoustic systems, and artificial intelligence – is key to future research, and the next ten years promises to deliver a new age of deep-sea science.

The Universal Value of Nature

Does nature have a universal value? Can we consider natural capital as equivalent to financial capital? This lecture gives a brief history of value, exploring the similarities between historical arguments as to why the value of housework and nature are not reflected either in theory or in the system of national accounts and GDP. It will explore the difficulties with putting a value on nature, for example trying to make meaningful estimates of what contribution water makes to our lives.

Nature's Numbers: Natural Capital Accounting

How can we ensure we are not destroying the environment? Natural Capital is becoming a central theme in national accounting systems.

Redesigning the World in Which We Live to Put the Planet First

How can we help human society flourish without destroying nature? The Wellbeing Economy and Natural Capital are linked strategies that can help achieve this. The Wellbeing Economy provides design principles to ensure that our planet serves both humanity and the planet’s ecosystems. Natural capital provides design parameters to track the quality and quantity of ecosystems and resources, including the invisible value of nature.

Under the Sea: What's Happening in Our Oceans?

Scientists are now finding increasing evidence of the terrible extent of human-induced damage of the sea. What attempts are being made to reduce this footprint of human activity, and can they succeed in restoring the largest living space on earth?

Britain's Damaged Rivers

From the nineteenth century onwards, growth in the UK's towns...

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