Join lawyers and leaders from around the globe to contribute to a sustainable and resilient future.
UW Law Sustainable International Development Graduate Program
The UW Law Sustainable International Development (SID) Program trains lawyers to address interrelated global challenges and to advance law and policy frameworks that help people thrive within the ecological limits of our planet. SID law students analyze strategies for development and rule-of-law promotion in a dynamic academic setting, where they engage with peers from around the world who possess an impressive range of law, policy and advocacy experience. Students who hold a first degree in law from outside the United States may also qualify through this program to sit for a bar exam in the U.S.
Practical approaches to global development challenges
Students learn through an innovative, hands-on and practical program that includes experiential and collaborative opportunities designed to build skills to face the global development challenges of the 21st century.
Sustainable International Development students typically focus their studies in one or more of the following areas:
- Rule of law, human rights and governance
- Implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals and Agenda 2030
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- Global environmental protection and addressing climate change
- Global environmental protections
- Corporate responsibility and sustainability, business and human rights, ESG
- Indigenous peoples’ rights
Students are also encouraged to explore their academic interests by taking courses offered by other UW graduate schools.
Real-world application
Our experiential learning partners have included the UN Global Compact, the Coalition Against Slavery and Trafficking, Landesa, Global Rights Advocacy, the Environmental Defender Law Center, Business for Social Responsibility (BSR), the International Corporate Accountability Roundtable, UNIDROIT, Heifer International, Communities First, the Clooney Foundation for Justice, Human Rights Watch, the ABA Rule of Law Initiative, the Basel Action Network (BAN) and the Puget Soundkeeper Alliance, among others.
Graduates of this program will be equipped to work within leading non-governmental and civil society organizations; development organizations such as the United Nations Development Program, USAID and the World Bank; corporations and private consulting firms; law firms; and active military service focused on the rule of law.
Curriculum
The Sustainable Development curriculum draws upon the strengths of the UW Law faculty, locally based practitioners and partner organizations. Courses provide students with both theory and hands-on experience. Skills-building classes also introduce internationally trained attorneys to U.S. legal practice and help all students strengthen their writing, analysis and presentation skills. Core faculty include professors with expertise in business and human rights, anti-corruption, human rights, and protecting rights to land and resources for vulnerable communities in the developing world.
To see full curriculum, click here
To visit, official page, click here
