Scholarship | Biographical Note

Biographical Note

Michelle T. Leighton is the director of Human Rights Programs, Center for Law and Global Justice. She is a specialist in international human rights law and environmental issues; she counsels nonprofit organizations, government, and intergovernmental agencies. Leighton has served as a special advisor to the U.N. Environment Program, International Fund for Agricultural Development, International Organization for Migration, and the United States Congressional Commission on Immigration Reform. She coordinated briefing materials and workshops with World Health Organization and U.N. Children's Fund (UNICEF) for government delegates and NGOs at World Summit on Children to obtain government commitments on children's environmental health issues. She continues to represent NGOs at United Nations sessions and conferences. In 1989, Leighton co-founded the nonprofit organization, the Natural Heritage Institute and the People and Global Resources program, serving as senior attorney for 15 years. Prior to joining the University of San Francisco School of Law, she served as the acting dean of John F. Kennedy University School of Law. Leighton has taught courses on international human rights, environmental, and trade issues at Golden Gate University, UC Berkeley's Boalt Hall School of Law, and the USF School of Law.

Education

BA, UC Davis
JD, Golden Gate University

Scholarship

Michelle Leighton's SSRN Page

Publications

The Center for Law and Global Justice co-published a report with UC Berkeley Boalt Hall School of Law on climate change and human rights (November 2009).

"The Challenges of Climigration," 50 D+C Development and Cooperation (July 2009).

"Sentencing Our Children to Die in Prison: Global Law and Practice," 42 University of San Francisco Law Review 983 (Spring 2008) (with Constance de la Vega). [SSRN]

Report on Human Rights Violations: Sentencing Our Children to Die in Prison, The Frank C. Newman International Human Rights Clinic and The Center for Law and Global Justice, University of San Francisco School of Law, in association with Human Rights Advocates (2007) (principal author).

“Desertification + Migration = Security?," published in the Desertification and Security Conference Proceedings, German Federal Foreign Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (2007). [SSRN]

Governing Global Desertification: Linking Environmental Degradation, Poverty and Participation (London: Ashgate Press, 2006) (contributor).

The Human Right to Water:  Exploring Public and Private Legal Obligations for the Equitable Distribution, Transfer and Use of Water, American Bar Association, Section on Environment, Energy and Resources (2003 Fall Meeting, Wash. D.C.).

Developing Indicators and Monitoring Tools to Promote Science and Community-Based Policies for Dryland Biodiversity Protection…Sustainable Use of Biodiversity of Global Significance in Arid/Semi-Arid Zones (GEF, 2003) (co-author).

Beyond Good Deeds: Case Studies and a New Policy Agenda for Corporate Accountability (NHI, July 2002) (co-author).

"Civil Society Concerns in the Context of Economic Globalization," 15 The Transnational Lawyer 105 (Winter 2002) (co-author).

World Atlas on Desertification and Drought, 2d ed., (1997, UN Environment Programme, Nairobi, Kenya) (contributor).

Restoring the Waters (1997, Nat. Res. Law Center, U.of Colorado) (contributor).

A Contribution to the Environment and Security Debate: NHI'S U.S.-Mexico Case Study on Desertification and Migration, Environmental Change and Security Project Report (Spring 1997, Woodrow Wilson Center, Washington, D.C.) (co-author).

International Environmental Law Anthology, A. D'Amato, ed., (Anderson Pub. Co., 1996) (contributor).

Opportunities for Addressing Interrelated Problems of Dryland Desertification, Biodiversity Loss, and Climate Change, Global Biodiversity Forum (IUCN, Dakar, 1998).

Environmental Degradation and Migration, Research Paper, U.S. Congressional Commission on Immigration Reform (Dec.1997).

Desertification and Migration: Case Studies and Evaluation, Desertification and Migration, J. Puigdefabregas & T. Mendizabal (Logorno, Spain, 1995) (co-author).

"Reevaluating the California Tanner Act:  Public Empowerment v. Efficient Waste Disposal," California Real Property Journal (Spring 1995, State Bar of California) (co-author).

"International Legal Protection for Victims of Environmental Abuse," 18 Yale Journal of International Law 355 (1993). [Westlaw]

Presentations/Speeches

Presenter, "Protecting Our Human Rights in a Climate-Changed World," Rights and the Environment, sponsored by the Rosenfield Program and the Henry R. Luce Program in Nations and the Global Environment, Des Moines, Iowa (November 2009).

Participant, "Is it Cruel and Unusual to Sentence a Child to Life Without the Possibility of Parole?" Georgetown University, hosted in concordance with the U.S. Supreme Court hearings Sullivan v. Florida and Graham v. Florida (November 2009).

Speaker, "Expert Workshop on Climate Change, Environment, and Migration," U.N. Environment Program, International Organization for Migration, U.N. University and Munich Re Foundation (July 2009).

Presenter, 17th Economic and Environmental Forum, Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, Athens, Greece (May 2009).

Participant, German Marshall Fund's Transatlantic Workshop on Climate Induced Migration (June 2009).

Speaker, "Protecting the Most Vulnerable in a Climate-Changed World," Nineteenth Annual Fulbright Symposium for the American Society of International Law, Golden Gate University School of Law, San Francisco, California (April 2009).

Speaker, "Climate Change and Conflict: Drivers of Environmental Migration," Fordham Environmental Law Review Symposium, "Global Responses to Eco-Migration and Environmental Disasters: The Role of U.S. and International Law & Policy," New York, NY (February 2009).

Speaker, "Desertification, Climate Change and Migration: Perspective on the African Continent," Climate Change, Environmental Degradation and Migration: Addressing Vulnerabilities and Harnessing Opportunities, conference organized by the Government of Greece, Human Security Network and the International Organization for Migration, Geneva, Switzerland (Feb. 19, 2008).

Speaker, Desertification and Security Conference, German Federal Foreign Office, Berlin, Germany (June 26, 2007).

Speaker, “Iraq for Sale: The War Profiteers,” Corporate Accountability, Amnesty International and Stanford Centre on Ethics, Stanford University (Feb. 25, 2007).

Closing Lecture, Climate Change Liability Symposium, Stanford Environmental Law Journal and Journal of International Law, Stanford School of Law (Feb. 24, 2007).

Closing Lecture, Second International Symposium on Desertification and Migration, sponsored by the Ministry of Environment, Government of Spain (Oct. 27, 2006).

Rapporteur, Final Session, Golden Gate University School of Law, ASIL and Fulbright Symposium (April 2006).

Guest Speaker, “Human Rights, Nigeria and Oil,” World Affairs Council (East Bay Chapter) (March 2006).

Panel Member, “Environmental Challenges to the Protection of Human Rights: Global Issues and Local Perspectives,” World Affairs Council (June 1, 2005).

Speaker, Fulbright Symposium, Golden Gate University School of Law (April 2005).

Speaker, California’s Right to Know, California Legislative Briefing Session, Senate Select Committee on International Trade, Sacramento (Oct. 10, 2003).

Plenary Speaker, “Reflections After the Election: Where Do We Go From Here?," CoopAmerica Green Business Conference, San Francisco (Nov. 3, 2004).

Speaker, Encuentro Internacional de Doctores y Doctorandos en Derecho Ambiental, El Acceso al Agua Potable en el Eiglo XXI, Mexico City (Oct. 23, 2003).

Plenary Speaker, Panel on Water and International Law, American Bar Association, Section on Environment, Energy and Resources, Fall Meeting, Washington, D.C. (2003).

Speaker, Workshop on Emerging Issues in Social/Sustainability Reporting, CERES Annual 2003 Conference on Advancing Sustainable Governance, New York, NY (Apr. 1, 2003).

Speaker, Symposium on Holding the U.S. Accountable: Human and Civil Rights Violations Post 9/11, UC Berkeley Boalt Hall School of Law (Mar. 15, 2003).

Speaker, Symposium on International Environmental Governance, Int’l Comparative Law Review and West-Northwest Journal, Hastings College of the Law (Feb. 21, 2003).

Panel Member, Symposium, Holding Multinational Corporations Responsible Under International Law, Hastings College of the Law (Feb. 23-24, 2001).

Speaker, Symposium on Biotechnology and Law, McGeorge School of Law (May 2000).

Speaker, Environment Panel, National Summit on Africa, Washington, D.C. (Feb. 2000).

Speaker, Human Rights and Environment Session, Environmental Grantmakers Association Annual Meeting, Monterey, California (Oct. 1999).

Speaker, Corporate Accountability and Human Rights, 8^th Annual Meeting of the American Society of International Law, 9^th Annual Fulbright Symposium on International Legal Problems, Golden Gate University (Mar. 19, 1999).

Speaker, Opening the International Court of Justice to Claims of Non-State Actors, International & Domestic Perspectives Conference, Stanford Law School (May 2, 1998).

Radio Interview, Living on Earth, hosted by Steve Curwood, broadcast nationwide on KQED Public Radio, Mar. 20, 1998.

Other Activities

Co-Author (with Constance de la Vega and Neil Popovic), amicus brief in support of petitioners in Graham v. Florida and Sullivan v. Florida (July 2009) (PDF full-text download available here).

Appointed as Advisor to the United Nations Population Fund, advising on 2009 State of the World Population Report (February 2009).

Media