The Environmental Law creates a regulatory framework for the sustainable use and management of natural resources and simultaneously provides measures for the conservation and rehabilitation of the environment towards achieving specified social, economic, reconstruction and ecological goals. The development of the laws in this area has seen a considerable share of initiative by the judiciary, particularly the higher judiciary. Although the concept of 'environmental governance' has yet to be precisely defined, it is already clear that courts worldwide are playing an increasingly important role in developing, interpreting, applying and enforcing environmental law.

The International Judicial Conference 2012 will provide a forum to discuss and review the role of judiciary in protecting 'environmental governance'; to identify gaps in legislation, national policies and their implementation and to determine the status of implementation of international environmental treaties.