# Bottom Up Policy, Environmental Justice, and the Interdisciplinary Lawyer with Sergio Sánchez
Episode of Studying Law Around the World, hosted by Claudio Klaus.
Published: Tue, 21 Jul 2026 11:00:00 GMT
Duration: 00:22:28
## Summary
In this week's episode of Studying Law Around the World, I sat down with Sergio Sánchez. Sergio is a lawyer from Mexico City, a Stanford PhD candidate, and a brilliant environmental policy leader working at the intersection of sustainability, climate justice, and community driven solutions. He generously shared his insights on how legal professionals can step outside traditional boundaries to create real, lasting impact.What you will learnBottom Up Policymaking: Why top down environmental regulations often fail local communities and how to incorporate meaningful consultation early in the development process.Ending Parachute Research: The ethical imperative to share academic findings with local populations, empowering them to negotiate fairer contracts and protect their own resources.The Living Laboratory: How electrifying the educational farm at Stanford University proves that lawyers must collaborate with engineers and scientists to build practical, real world solutions.Why this mattersFor junior lawyers interested in sustainability, the career path is not always clearly defined by traditional law firms. Sergio proves that environmental law is not just about administrative permitting; it is fundamentally about human lives. By moving away from abstract legal theory and embracing an interdisciplinary mindset, you can build a career that actively bridges the gap between high level policy and practical community needs. Advocacy requires stepping out of the office and working alongside the people who will actually live with the consequences of your legal and policy decisions.Three takeawaysAvoid the top down trap. Do not wait until a project is finished to ask for community feedback. True advocacy requires engaging with stakeholders during the planning and construction phases to ensure their specific daily needs are met.Translate knowledge into action. Whether you are doing academic research or legal analysis, your work must be accessible. Give communities the concrete data they need to negotiate better terms, just as Sergio did by helping local groups in Colombia understand the true value of their carbon storing peatlands.Embrace interdisciplinary work. You cannot solve global climate issues with the law alone. Stay curious and be entirely willing to collaborate with experts across different scientific and technical fields to build solutions that actually function in the real world.Guest: Sergio Sánchez, Mexican lawyer, environmental advocate, and Stanford PhD candidate. He is deeply dedicated to making the global energy transition more just, equitable, and community centered.Where to listen and how to support the showSearch Studying Law Around the World on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or your favorite podcast app.If you found value in this episode, please take a moment to follow or subscribe to the show on your platform of choice. Leaving a rating and review is the best way to support the podcast, helping us continue to grow and bring these invisible rules of the legal profession to more junior lawyers around the world.Selected episodes of Studying Law Around the World are eligible for Continuing Professional Development (CPD) credit with the Law Society of Ontario (LSO) and Continuing Legal Education (CLE/CPD) credit with the Law Society of British Columbia (LSBC).For approved episodes, accreditation details, and participation information, please visit: ⁠https://law-learn-link.base44.app/Episodes
## Listen
- Episode link: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/studyinglawaroundtheworld/episodes/Bottom-Up-Policy--Environmental-Justice--and-the-Interdisciplinary-Lawyer-with-Sergio-Snchez-e3mb6dd
- Audio: https://anchor.fm/s/38a26d44/podcast/play/123098989/https%3A%2F%2Fd3ctxlq1ktw2nl.cloudfront.net%2Fstaging%2F2026-6-21%2F428315650-44100-2-9aa77767f8239.m4a
- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/34QvO0swkWx4XtNxlItXWe
- Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/studying-law-around-the-world/id1547616885
Show page: https://claudioklaus.com/podcast
Canonical: https://claudioklaus.com/podcast/episodes/bottom-up-policy-environmental-justice-and-the-interdisciplinary-lawyer-with-ser.md