March 2025 Newsletter

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by

Legal Voices for the Future
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Dear LVF Members

Welcome to LVF’s March newsletter! March is a month of growth and renewal, and at LVF we hope to support you in any new ideas or changes that come into your life this spring, through our events and shared opportunities.

This edition of Legal Voices for the Future’s newsletter includes: 

  • Our upcoming events 
  • Reflections on our March Knowledge Session on Central Banks and the Climate Crisis and our Eco-poetry night 
  • Other events covering climate- and environmental-related topics
  • Podcast recommendations
  • Job/volunteering opportunities members may be interested in

See you next month,

LVF Education

March Knowledge Session with LVF Stewardship Committee Member Martina Menegat 

On 16 March, we hosted a knowledge session on Central Banks and the Climate Crisis led by LVF Stewardship Committee Member Martina Menegat. 

In her introduction, Martina explained how central banks have been integrating climate risks in their mandates and core functions, including monetary policy, financial stability, and supervision of financial institutions.

Martina moderated a panel debate between Daniel Segoin, Senior Legal Counsel at the European Central Bank, Megan Bowman, Professor of Law at King’s College London, and Dan Eziefula, Lawyer at the Accountable Finance Team of ClientEarth exploring the role of lawyers in advancing climate integration in central banking. Speakers highlighted tools such as internal advocacy, external pressure, and strategic litigation – such as the case brought by ClientEarth against the Belgian central bank. Examples of evolving central banking practices include the Bank of England’s efforts to integrate climate risks into senior management accountability, and fines imposed by the European Central Bank against banks like Crédit Agricole for failing to properly assess climate risks. The panel addressed current political and geopolitical constraints, including growing political resistance to ESG policies, which both heighten financial stability risks and widen the gap between technical decision-making and democratic oversight. A key conclusion was that stronger public engagement is essential to further climate change integration into central banking mandates: while central banking may appear too technical for the broad public, it plays a strategic role in enabling climate action, and greater public awareness and scrutiny can help drive progress.

The session concluded with a collective reading of The Train Has Whistled by Luigi Pirandello, prompting reflection on how creativity and collaboration – both internal and external – can foster innovation even within traditionally conservative legal and institutional frameworks.

Please find the slides of the Knowledge Session and the pictures at this link. You can also rewatch the Knowledge Session on LVF’s YouTube channel. A link to the recording can be found here. 

LVF Community 

LVF Eco-poetry night

On 3 March, we marked LVF’s third birthday with an Eco-poetry night that felt both celebratory and reflective. The evening brought together a rich mix of voices, each approaching ecology from a distinct and personal angle. Featured poets J Spooner (spooner.earth), Tara Brown and Jess Grynfeld (WILD THING POETRY), William Wyld (Thames-Side Studios), Kit Miles (playwright), and Chris Thorpe explored topics from ecology to queerness, folklore to absurdity. 

Alongside the featured readings, we opened the floor to participants through a series of open mic slots. This created a welcoming, collaborative space where attendees could share their own work or revisit poems they loved, all loosely connected by nature-adjacent themes. These contributions added a sense of spontaneity and community to the evening, as new and familiar voices intertwined.

The night was not only a celebration of LVF’s work, but also a reminder of poetry’s ability to foster connection between people, ideas and nature. You can find the pictures of the night here. 

Other events

  • 18 March – 26 April: Museum of Edible Earth (Somerset House): The Museum of Edible Earth invites visitors to explore geophagy, the practice of eating earth for health, ritual and culinary benefit. Book tickets for the exhibition here. 
  • Until 14 June: Kõmij Mour Ijin/Our Life is Here (National Maritime Museum, London): The National Maritime Museum hosts an art exhibition on reflections on nuclear testing and climate change in the Marshall Islands. For more information see here.
  • 1 April, 5.30-7 pm: Democracy for a sustainable world (LSE): James Bacchus, former WTO Appellate Body chief judge and US congressman, will present his latest book, outlining a new vision of sustainable democracy based on classical Athenian ideas of governance. Register here. 
  • 2 April, 5-7 pm: LSE/ClientEarth Clinic Presentation: Who Pays for Climate Breakdown? Banks, Financed Emissions, and the Road to Climate Accountability (LSE). An in-person event where students will present the findings of their investigations on legal causation and scientific attributions in strategic climate cases and on the responsibility of banks for financed emissions. Register here. 
  • 14-16 May 2026: MOTH Festival of Ideas (London). The MOTH Festival of Ideas is dedicated to exploring the rich and rapidly evolving field of inquiry and action pursuing efforts to bring the more-than-human world into the ambit of moral, legal, and social concern. The Festival will include keynote talks, interviews, film screenings, book launches, poetry readings, concerts, and performances of various kinds by prominent scientists, lawyers, Indigenous leaders, artists, journalists, advocates, and scholars from around the world. A fee for the public will apply. For more information see here. 
  • May 2026: Henry Moore Monumental Nature, Kew Gardens (London): the largest outdoor exhibition of Moore’s work ever presented, featuring over 100 pieces including 30 monumental sculptures set throughout the Gardens.
  • 15-26 June, Florence Summer School Imagining Planetary Legal Orders (European University Institute, Florence). The Summer School will examine approaches that challenge international law’s anthropocentric framework, such as rights of nature, post-human legalities, law & geography, and earth system law. You have time to apply until 3 April. 
  • Until November 2026: Gathering Around at the Tate (London): this exhibition highlights the connection between environmental and social justice, inviting us to reimagine our relationships with the natural world and each other. More information here.
  • Ongoing during 2026 (London): Birkbeck and LSE have a number of events as part of their climate festivals running throughout the year. See also Climate Connection for more London climate events.  

If you go to any of these events – let us know! We’d love to hear your experience and share it with other Legal Voices members on our Linkedin Community Group and website.

Podcast recommendations

This month we recommend the episode Melting ICE: The Climate Movement Defends Democracy by A Matter of Degrees. 

In December, the Trump administration launched a sweeping immigration crackdown in Minnesota, deploying thousands of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. The operation disrupted communities, led to widespread detentions, and sparked outrage after two U.S. citizens were killed by federal agents. Climate groups were among those helping to organise resistance on the ground.

In this episode, A Matter of Degrees explores the links between immigration enforcement, state violence, and the fossil fuel industry.

Job / volunteering opportunities

Thinking about pursuing a new job or internship opportunity this spring? The following may be of interest (please not we are not recommending or endorsing these roles):

  • Senior Legal Adviser, Blue Marine Foundation – London (hybrid), apply here by 30 March. 
  • Legal Counsel, Legal, Compliance & Assurance, WWF UK – Living Planet Centre, Woking, Surrey (hybrid), apply here by 2 April
  • Head of Legal, Global Witness – London (hybrid), apply here by 6 April
  • Iris Prize 2026 – if you are aged 14/24, and you have an idea or an established project projecting or restoring nature in your local community, you can apply for funding from the Iris Project until 8 April. 
  • Interim Director of Legal (maternity-leave cover), The Lifescape Project – UK (hybrid arrangements possible), apply here by 14 April. 
  • Associate/Senior Associate, Climate Philanthropy Advisors – Europe (hybrid) – apply here
  • Research Fellows, Ocean Law and Policy (two-year fixed-term), Centre for International Law (CIL) – National University of Singapore, Singapore, apply here by 12 April. 
  • In-House Legal Adviser (part-time), Finance Earth – London (hybrid), apply here by 12 April. 
  • Research Associate, Climate Science, Law and Policy (two-year fixed-term), Grantham Institute for Climate Change – Imperial College London, London (hybrid), apply here by 15 April 
  • Lawyer, Advocacy and Campaigns (maternity-leave cover), WWF UK – Living Planet Centre Woking, Surrey (hybrid), apply here 
  • Legal Officer (two-year part-time), Community Law & Mediation’s Centre for Environmental Justice – Dublin (hybrid), apply here by 20 April

You can find more opportunities via The Planetary Lawyer Project on LinkedIn here or follow one of our founders, Margherita Cornaglia, who often reposts exciting opportunities. 

We also have a list of organisations who may be offering volunteering, job or internship opportunities on our website. If you know of any opportunities which might be of interest to LVF Members, or if you start a new role which you found through our newsletter, please give us a shout!

Last but not least – check out our website and blog for more information about LVF’s work, its Stewardship Committee, resources, videos and more!
If you’re feeling inspired, or looking for a space to express some thoughts on a topic which might be of interest to LVF members, we’d love for you to write a blog for us! Check out our blog post guidelines here and get in touch via legalvoicesforthefuture@gmail.com.

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