The annual FIU Environment Forum will be held over two days at the main campus of FIU in Miami, FL on February 22nd - 23rd 2024. All events are held at the FIU College of Law – Courtroom – Rafael Diaz Balart Hall 1000, unless otherwise indicated in this program.
Thursday February 22
8:30 AM to 9:15 AM: Registration and Breakfast
Welcome Remarks:
Prof. Mario Loyola, FIU Institute of Environment and College of Law
Dean Antony Page, FIU College of Law
9:15 AM to 10:35 AM: AI, Environmental Data, and Climate Tech
Prof. Mike Sukop, FIU Dept. of Earth and Environment
Prof. Jason Liu, FIU Dept. of Computer Science
Prof. Mark Finlayson, FIU Dept. Computer Sciences
Ryan Smith, Oxa
Prof. Annie Brett, UF Law
Moderator: Prof. Gregory Murad Reis, FIU College of Engineering & Computer Sciences
10:45 AM to 11:45 AM: Green Amendments: Rights Based Environmentalism
Maya van Rossum, Delaware Riverkeeper
Melissa Martin, Florida Right to Clean Water
Eric Grant, Hicks Thomas
Prof. Mark Nevitt, Emory Law
Prof. James Coleman, Southern Methodist University
Moderator: Prof. Amber Polk. FIU College of Law
12:00 PM to 1:45 PM: Lunch Debate “The Promise and Pitfalls of Climate Policy” Graham Center Ballroom
Susan Glickman, VP Policy and Partnerships, CLEO Institute
Prof. Kerry Emanuel, Professor Emeritus of Atmospheric Sciences, MIT
Kent Lassman, President, Competitive Enterprise Institute
Moderator: Andrew Sollinger, Publisher, Foreign Policy
(Debate sponsored by the FIU Office of Public Policy Events in partnership with Foreign Policy magazine.)
2:00 PM to 3:10 PM: Coastal Resilience Strategies
Prof. Todd Crowl, Director, FIU Institute of Environment
Prof. James W. Fourqurean, FIU Institute of Environment
Pippa Brashear, SCAPE Landscape Architecture
Galen Treuer, Climate Tech and Economic Innovation Manager, Miami-Dade County
Moderator: Michael Heithaus, Executive Dean, FIU CASE
3:20 PM to 4:50 PM: Science and Public Choice in Climate Policy
Prof. Tiffany Troxler, FIU Dept. of Earth & Environment
Prof. Jayantha Obeysekera, FIU Institute of Environment
Prof. Jessica Weinkle, UNC-Asheville
Kevin Dayaratna, Senior Statistician, Heritage Foundation
Moderator: Prof. Mario Loyola, FIU
6:30 PM Reception and Dinner (By Invitation Only) FIU Int’l Center for Tropical Botany Kampong Coconut Grove
Dr. Wesley Brooks, Chief Resilience Officer, State of Florida
Friday February 23
8:30 AM to 9:15 AM: Welcome Remarks:
Prof. Mario Loyola, FIU Institute of Environment and College of Law
Executive Dean Michael Heithaus, FIU College of Arts, Sciences, and Education
9:15 AM to 10:25 AM: Assessing EPA's Vehicle and Power Plant Rules
Joanne Spalding, Sierra Club
Susan Glickman, VP Policy and Partnerships, CLEO Institute
Steven Bradbury, Heritage Foundation
Michael Buschbacher, Boyden Gray & Associates
Moderator: Prof. Mario Loyola, FIU
10:35 AM to 11:45 AM: International Climate Finance
Richard Morrison, Competitive Enterprise Institute
Eugene Montoya, Waterfront Alliance
Silvio Pupo-Casco, VoLo Foundation Fellow, FIU
Henrique Schneider, Swiss Federation of Small- and Medium Sized Businesses, member of Swiss Delegation to the Climate COP
Moderator: Flavio Carrillo, FIU College of Business
12:00 PM to 1:45 PM: Lunch, VoLo Foundation Lecture and Conversation: “Science and Free Speech” - Tamiami Hall (Multipurpose Room, Ground Floor)
Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, Professor of Medicine, Stanford University.
Lecture will be followed by a conversation with FIU Prof. Mario Loyola, moderated by Andrew Sollinger, publisher, Foreign Policy magazine.
2:00 PM to 3:00 PM: Lecture: Climate Change and Hurricanes
Prof. Kerry Emanuel, Professor Emeritus of Atmospheric Sciences, MIT
3:10 PM to 4:40 PM: Extreme Events, Homeowners Insurance and NFIP
Jeffrey Jackson FEMA Deputy Asst. Admin. For the National Flood Insurance Program
Prof. Shahid Hamid, FIU Dept. of Finance
Rakesh Mishra, President, Star Casualty Insurance
Michael Yaworsky, FL Insurance Commissioner
Moderator: Arun Upadhyay, FIU College of Business
4:50 PM to 5:30 PM: Special Presentation: Coastal Resilience and the Urban Environment
Pippa Brashear, Resilience Principal, SCAPE Landscape Architecture
5:30 PM Closing Reception
College of Law Courtyard
To register for the FIU Environment Forum, please fill out the webform.
Watch the Recordings
The FIU Environment Forum is an annual event. In 2023, the event included eleven sessions. 2022's Forum, the Climate Finance Forum, included six sessions. These video recordings of the events cover a range of topics related to environmental science, policy, finance, and more.