School of Law
David Dana is a Professor at Northwestern’s Law School, as well as an Associate Dean for Academic Affairs; Faculty and Research. David specializes in the fields of environmental, property, intellectual property, and professional responsibility law. He teaches courses in all these areas, and has published many articles on these topics. Before becoming a professor at Northwestern, David worked as an environmental litigator for the U.S. Department of Justice, and in a private law firm. As one of the Co-Directors of NiSP, David is committed to the idea that truly sustainable solutions to the world’s pressing environmental problems must draw from multiple disciplines.
What does sustainability mean to you? The key idea for me is a recognition of intergenerational responsibility on the part of policymakers and regular citizens alike for actions - or inaction - that will affect the planet 50 or 100 or more years from now. Another key idea in sustainability is that multiple values have to be addressed from multiple perspectives -- we can't set policy looking just at raw economic growth or just at preservation of environmental well-being or just at distribution. To be sustainable, to be evolutionary, but also in balance, economic, environmental, and distributive concerns all have to be meshed.
How does your research/professional work connect to sustainability? I write and research issues of law and policy related to land use and environmental regulation, including such issues as environmental risks from emerging technologies such as nanotechnology, species preservation and climate change. These are core, and big, issues of sustainability.
How did you get involved? I started writing about these issues from an academic perspective informed by an interest in how economic and political institutions produce law and legal change, and also from the perspective of a citizen who just wanted to know what was happening and what should be happening.
What role can universities play in advancing sustainable practices? Universities are key to developing new methods, insights and technologies that can help us collectively move to better sustainability solutions. Universities can also produce informed citizens and leaders by providing students with a rigorous introduction to issues of sustainability, regardless of their field of concentration.
How can the university setting contribute practical, near-term solutions to the urgent need for sustainability? Ideally, broad-based, fundamental and independent research at the university level can produce advances that industry or government on their own cannot or would not, although ultimately universities, industry and government do and must collaborate. It’s also important that universities set an example by, for example, adopting policies and practices that allow their employees to reduce their carbon footprint That's one of the reasons that I think NU's shuttles system, including the intercampus shuttle, is a good idea. I’d like to see more of that sort of initiative at NU and other campuses.
What do you see as the key steps to achieving sustainability? I guess I’m biased since I’m an educator and researcher, but -- education and research are key.
If you could have one sustainability wish, what would it be? I would like us to develop a better alternative to fossil fuels -- and especially coal -- that is both environmentally safe and economically practicable.
What’s your favorite sustainable product? Tap water (I admit I buy bottle water sometimes, but I try not to get the stuff shipped all the way from Fiji).
What about your environmental vice? I like being warm, and I like lots of indoor light so when it comes to electricity consumption, I’m part of the problem. The vice question is important because there really are some appealing or pleasurable aspects of some environmentally troubling behaviors, and that's why finding substitutes or changing people's preferences can be hard.
