Name: Paul Joffe

Position: Director of International Affairs, National Wildlife Federation (NWF)

Educaiton: Harvard College '69, Yale Law School '72

1. How does your present work involve issues of international environmental
   law?
   
   NWF is engaged in education and advocacy on international legal and policy issues such as trade and environment, climate change, and others. We regularly work on legislation, file comments on executive branch proposals, and file amicus briefs in U.S. courts and before international tribunals.
   
   
2. Which aspects of international environmental law practice do you find the most interesting, and which do you consider the most difficult?
   
   Much of our international legal work is especially interesting because we are exploring uncharted territory in actions ranging from WTO deliberations to policy regarding NAFTA Article 14 and 15 citizen challenge provisions.
   
   
3. What training and/or previous experience do you consider to have been helpful to your ability to effectively analyze and solve problems in this
   field?
   
   Before joining NWF, I had worked in a variety of positions, from Capitol Hill, to the U.S. Commerce Department, to private law practice. In the wide ranging work that we do at NWF, I have occasion to draw on all of these experiences.
   
   
4. Within the field, what issues or areas do you expect to pose the most significant challenges for policymakers, industry, and NGOs in the year 2000 and beyond?
   
   The work we do is so broad that the challenges are almost unlimited. Generalizing, I would say that some of our greatest challenges are
   reconciling the different approaches to law and policy and the different circumstances of the many countries drawn into closer and closer connections in our globalizing world.
   
   
5. What words of encouragement or counsel would you offer to students of environmental law or to young environmental law practitioners interested in working in the area of international environmental law?
   
   Things are changing so fast in this field that we all have to remain students and keep learning. The good news is that the work is interesting and there are opportunities to make a contribution to addressing important new challenges.