Staff profile

Dr Kim Bouwer is an Associate Professor in the Law School and a Co-Director of the Energy Institute.  She holds an LLB from the University of the Witwatersrand (Johannesburg) and an LLM from the University of London. She completed her PhD at UCL. Kim has held posts or visiting positions at a variety of global institutions, including the LSE, UCL, the European University Institute, the University of the Witwatersrand, and KCL.  Kim is also a dual qualified practitioner, and before her doctoral research worked as a claimant public interest lawyer. 

Kim specialises in climate change and environmental law, and private law (predominantly torts).  She has published widely in these fields in leading journals including Legal Studies, the Journal of Environmental Law, the Journal of Human Rights and Environment, and Nature Sustainability.  She has also been the UK Rapporteur for the British Institute for International and Comparative Law on their Global Perspectives on Corporate Climate Legal Tactics project. 

Research

Dr Bouwer’s broader research interests lie in energy and climate change law and private law. She is particularly interested in litigation in the context of climate change, the regulation and governance of energy efficiency and energy sources, and the low carbon technologies. 

Teaching

For the Durham Law School LLB, Dr Bouwer convenes and contributes lectures and seminars on the undergraduate Tort course. She has also convened and co-taught Global Environmental Law, Energy Law and Climate Change Law at Masters level, and supervises research at LLB and LLM level. 

Book review

• Bouwer, K. (2023). Climate change litigation: Global perspectives By Ivano Alogna, Christine Bakker, Jean‐Pierre Gauci (Eds.), Brill. 2021. pp. 542. Review of European, Comparative & International Environmental Law, 32(3), 507-508. https://doi.org/10.1111/reel.12519
• Bouwer, K. (2022). Climate Change Litigation in the Asia Pacific, Edited by Jolene Lin and Douglas A. Kysar Published by Cambridge University Press, 2020. Review of European, Comparative & International Environmental Law, 31(1), 150-152. https://doi.org/10.1111/reel.12435

Chapter in book

• Bouwer, K. (in press). Paris Climate Agreement. In Encyclopedia of Global Justice. Springer
• Bouwer, K., Etemire, U., Field, T.-L., & Jegede, A. (2024). Africa, Climate Justice and the Role of the Courts. In K. Bouwer, U. Etemire, T.-L. Field, & A. Jegede (Eds.), Climate Litigation and Justice in Africa (1-14). Bristol University Press. https://doi.org/10.56687/9781529228977-005
• Bouwer, K., & Gimson, R. (2022). Provoking McAuslan: Planning Law and Property Rights. In M. Lee, & C. Abbot (Eds.), Taking English Planning Law Scholarship Seriously. UCL Press
• Bouwer, K. (2021). Climate Change and the Individual in the United Kingdom. In F. Sindico, & M. M. Mbengue (Eds.), Comparative Climate Change Litigation: Beyond the Usual Suspects. Springer Verlag
• Savaresi, A., & Bouwer, K. (2018). Equity and justice in climate change law and policy: A role for benefit-sharing. In T. Jafry, M. Mikulewicz, & K. Helwig (Eds.), Routledge Handbook of Climate Justice. Routledge

Edited book

• Bouwer, K., Etemire, U., Field, T.-L., & Jegede, A. (Eds.). (2024). Climate Litigation and Justice in Africa. Bristol University Press. https://doi.org/10.56687/9781529228977
• Bouwer, K., & Field, T.-L. (Eds.). (2021). Special Issue: The Emergence of Climate Litigation in Africa. Lexxion

Journal Article

• Savaresi, A., Setzer, J., Bookman, S., Bouwer, K., Chan, T., Keuschnigg, I., Armeni, C., Harrington, A., Heri, C., Higham, I., Hilson, C., Luporini, R., Macchi, C., Nordlander, L., Obani, P., Peterson, L., Schapper, A., Singh Ghaleigh, N., Tigre, M. A., & Wewerinke-Singh, M. (2024). Conceptualising Just Transition Litigation. Nature Sustainability, 7, 1379-1384. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-024-01439-y
• Bouwer, K., John, E., Luke, O., & Rozhan, N. A. (2023). ‘Climate Change isn’t Optional’: Climate Change in the Core Law Curriculum. Legal Studies, 43(2), 240 - 258. https://doi.org/10.1017/lst.2022.35
• Bouwer, K. (2022). The Influence of Human Rights on Climate Litigation in Africa. Journal of Human Rights and the Environment, 13(1), 157-177. https://doi.org/10.4337/jhre.2022.01.07
• Bouwer, K. (2021). Possibilities for Justice and Equity in Human Rights and Climate Law: Benefit-Sharing in Climate Finance. Climate Law, 11(1), 1-44. https://doi.org/10.1163/18786561-11010001
• Bouwer, K., & Field, T.-L. (2021). The Emergence of Climate Litigation in Africa. https://doi.org/10.21552/cclr/2021/2/3
• Bouwer, K. (2021). Substantial Justice?: Transnational Torts as Climate Litigation. https://doi.org/10.21552/cclr/2021/2/9
• Bouwer, K. (2020). Lessons from a Distorted Metaphor: The Holy Grail of Climate Litigation. Transnational Environmental Law, 9(2), 347 - 378
• Bouwer, K. (2018). Insights for Climate Technology Transfer from International Environmental and Human Rights Law. Journal of Intellectual Property Rights, 23(1),
• Bouwer, K. (2018). The Unsexy Future of Climate Change Litigation. Journal of Environmental Law, 30(3), https://doi.org/10.1093/jel/eqy017
• Bouwer, K. (2015). When gist is mist: mismatches in small-scale climatechange litigation. Environmental Law & Management, 27(1), 11-20

Other (Digital/Visual Media)

• Bouwer, K. (online). Climate Litigation and Climate Activism
• Bouwer, K. (2022). Net Zero Rule of Law: Climate Consciousness and Legal Education
• Bouwer, K. (2015). Climate consciousness in daily legal practice

Report

• Bouwer, K. (2024). Global Perspectives on Corporate Climate Legal Tactics: UK National Report. British Institute of International and Comparative Law
• Bouwer, K., Allen, T., Buck, J., Frantziou, E., Neuvonen, P., Sakharova, I., & Wang, Y. (2023). Climate Education in the Core at Durham Law School. [No known commissioning body]
• Bouwer, K., & Setzer, J. (2020). Climate Litigation as Climate Activism: What Works?. British Academy