David R. Boyd on Levering Transformative Change for a Healthy Environment from a Global Legal Perspective
In the coastal Wild West, when laws and justice do not align, the town can summon an environmental cowboy, someone able to negotiate a way out of the hair-trigger standoff to turn towards the sun. Leaving the Alberta Rockies behind in the rearview mirror of a Greyhound bus, lawyer, academic, and frontier spirit David R. Boyd has gone on to sheriff local, national, and international courts. While fulfilling mandates for governments and non-profits alike, he has also published several influential books, partnered with Indigenous and youth activists, and advocated tirelessly for the human right to a healthy environment.
Breaking bread with fellow hosts and UBC colleagues Kai Chan (professor and Canada Research Chair) and Clare Price (graduate student in soundscapes and urban transformation), David reminds us there is always an impetus to stand up for what’s right for nature—and for us. Whether performing site visits in the imperiled South Pacific for the UN or explaining how investing in women and girls empowers everyone, David knows that paving the way for transformative policymaking is just one avenue to changing lives for good.
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