IDEALaw 2006

The second IDEALaw conference took place on February 10 and 11 at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. It was a great success! Thanks to all of the speakers and participants who took part and helped make it such a memorable and thought-provoking weekend.

What is IDEALaw?

IDEALaw is a conference organized by the Social Activist Law Student Association of Dalhousie University Law School. The conference began with the desire to bring people together to envision new concepts of a "just" society. Our goal is to create a positive space for activists of all kinds to congregate and constructively discuss what they can and/or would do to bring us closer to their vision of an ideal society. As law students and activists, we want to work towards ensuring that our ideals are embodied in law and we invite attendees and speakers to engage in this exercise with us: to share ideas of justice and how to effect changes that would make the law more just. The 2006 event featured Mark Kingwell as the keynote speaker, and many distinguished speakers dealing with the following subject areas:

• Activism in the 21st century
• Community development
• Law and ideals in the international context
• Sexuality and the law
• Effecting change in poverty law
• Environmental issues in a just society

The goal of IDEALaw is not to be merely an academic exercise, but to bridge the gap between talk and action. With this in mind, we attempt to make the conference embody our ideals as much as possible - for example by serving organic snacks, and using reusable dishes and mugs for meals and cofffee. We are open to suggestions about how to improve the conference as well.

The first IDEALaw took place in February 2004 and was a great success. Speakers included Elizabeth May of the Sierra Club of Canada, Grahame Russell of Rights Action, Dr. Mike DeGagne of the Aboriginal Healing Foundation, Cristen Gleeson of the Pivot Legal Society, and Michael Mandel of Lawyers Against the War.

Media Inquiries

Members of the media are asked to direct all inquiries to idealaw.media@gmail.com

Supporters

SALSA would like to thank the following for their generous support for the 2006 conference:

• Dalhousie Student Union
• Dalhousie Law School Society
• Dalhousie Law School
• Dalhousie Aboriginal Law Students Society
• Environmental Law Students Society
• Nova Scotia Public Interest Research Group
• Dalhousie Journal of Legal Studies
• Java Blend Coffee
• Bob and Lori's Food Emporium
• Mary's Bread Basket
• Dalhousie Black Law Students Association
• Dal Law chapter of Canadian Lawyers for International Human Rights
• Dal OUTLAW

Need More Information?

If you have any questions about the conference please email salsa@dal.ca.