Vermont Law and Graduate School is excited to welcome two Animal Law Media Fellows to participate in the Environmental Law Center’s summer session this year. Over the first weekend of June, Grace van Deelen will audit Undercover Investigations of Animal Operations with professor Meg York. This one-of-a-kind weekend intensive course—one of many animal law and policy courses offered this summer—will guide students through a variety of legal considerations related to conducting undercover investigations of animal operations. Students will examine the intersection of criminal law, tort, and ethical issues, as well as what does and does not constitute actionable animal cruelty, evidentiary issues, corporate liability, social justice implications, and more.
We are honored Grace has joined the course, connecting with other students, and sharing her experience and expertise writing about climate, agriculture and science with the VLGS community. She is currently a reporter at The New Lede and a fellow at Sierra Magazine, and has also published work for Inside Climate News, Scientific American, Audubon, and Environmental Health News, among other publications. She is particularly interested in stories that illuminate the relationship between scientific research, human culture, food systems, and animal well-being and sentience. She is a graduate of MIT's Science Writing program and holds bachelor's degrees in biology and anthropology from Tufts University.
In addition to learning, networking, and enjoying beautiful Vermont, Grace will participate in the Environmental Law Center’s Hot Topics series. Lectures can be viewed live at vermontlaw.edu/live, and will be recorded. Grace's talk, “Compassionate Conservation: Bridging the Divide Between Caring for Ecosystems and Caring for Animals" will take place at 12:00 ET on Tuesday, June 6.
The VLGS Animal Law and Policy Institute is grateful to the American Society of the Prevention for Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), whose generous support makes our Animal Law Media Fellowships possible.