About the Conference

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Military wars and additional conflicts of global significance have caused social and humanitarian disasters and destabilized the world order.  The Global Peace Index 2024 found that 92 countries are currently involved in conflicts, more than at any time since World War II. This rise goes hand in hand with increasing militarization, states breaking away from the rule of law, democratic backsliding and shrinking civic space. At the same time less energy and resources are being invested in peacekeeping measures and enhancing democracy and justice.

While wars and conflicts rage on and refugees seek safety, the world is struggling to find good answers to climate change. 2024 was the warmest year since records began. The world is dangerously close to the temperature limits set out in the Paris Climate Agreement. Environmental disasters directly linked to man-made climate change occurred in almost all regions of the world. Hurricanes, droughts, rising sea levels, and food insecurity are just some of the challenges facing many communities.

Today, these crises and conflicts determine the lives of most people, whether privileged or not. They also change established theoretical frameworks, approaches, and categories, which also have an impact on education and the production of knowledge. Societies need to address the glaring issues of justice, fairness, and the impact of global crises on communities.

Clinical Legal Education and more generally Justice Education, has always demonstrated its potential to confront legal problems societies face and to find innovative solutions. Many of these legal education programs have enhanced social justice worldwide in many ways, both directly and through the emphasis on socially relevant legal education.

The world-wide conference organized by the Global Alliance for Justice Education ( GAJE) together with the European Network for Clinical Legal Education (ENCLE) and the Polish Legal Clinics Foundation (FUPP) at the Lazarski University’s Faculty of Law in Warsaw (Poland) will once again be an important meeting point for critical reflection about the power and role of legal education to transform societies and to defend the values of justice.

The main goal of this conference is to provide law teachers, law students, legal practitioners, jurists, and social activists from around the world the opportunity to share and acquire new ideas, models, and skills for the use of education to promote social justice. In a range of plenary, small‐group, and workshop sessions, delegates will explore justice education as a concept for presenting, discussing, and creating innovative ideas for promoting social justice through legal education, including new and existing university legal clinics. There will also be organized site visits to local justice education projects and a social calendar.

The General Conference, from 23 to 26 July 2025, will be organized to facilitate as much participation as possible by those attending. While there will be a small number of plenary sessions, including a few keynote speeches, most of the conference will consist of parallel interactive sessions/workshops or lightning talks, providing many opportunities for delegates to share ideas, experiences, and teaching methods, and materials. The General Conference structure prioritizes sessions using interactive methods.

The Train the Trainer (TOT) workshops will be held on two days: the first and last days of the conference (22^nd July and 27^th July 2025). The TOT is designed for both relatively new teachers and more experienced teachers who will be going back to their institutions to use and share what they have learned at the workshop. The TOT will focus on active learning with an emphasis on experiential education. It will be led by an international group of highly experienced justice educators.

The conference is organized to allow for in-person participation only!

Organizers

Global Alliance for Justice Education (GAJE)

GAJE is an ALLIANCE of persons committed to achieving JUSTICE through EDUCATION. Clinical education of law students is a key component of justice education, but GAJE also works to advance other forms of socially relevant legal education, which includes education of practicing lawyers, judges, non-governmental organizations, and the lay public. GAJE has held eleven worldwide conferences (1999 in India, 2001 in South Africa, 2004 in Poland, 2006 in Argentina, 2008 in the Philippines, 2011 in Spain, 2013 again in India, 2015 in Turkey, 2017 in Mexico, 2019 in Indonesia and 2022 in South Africa), some of which were organized in cooperation with the International Journal of Clinical Legal Education. GAJE has also sponsored or co-sponsored a number of regional conferences and workshops. See more information on www.gaje.org.

 

European Network for Clinical Legal Education

ENCLE is a European Network of persons committed to achieving justice through education. It aims to bring together persons from different countries, who exchange perspectives and work collaboratively from a variety of legal, educational, and organizational settings in order to promote justice and increase the quality of law teaching through Clinical Legal Education (CLE). ENCLE has held ten European CLE conferences (2013 in Warsaw, 2014 in Olomouc, 2015 in Budapest, 2016 in Valencia, 2017 in Newcastle, 2018 in Turin, 2019 in Bratislava, 2022 in Brescia, 2023 in Liverpool, and 2024 in Amsterdam). See more information on www.encle.eu.

 

Polish Legal Clinics Foundation (FUPP)

The Polish Legal Clinics Foundation has been operating since 2002. It supports and coordinates a network of 25 legal clinics and promotes pro bono engagement of lawyers. Every year there are almost 2000 students, and 350 academics involved in work in the clinics. All together they provide legal advice in almost 12 000 cases involving poor and socially excluded people. See more information on https://www.fupp.org.pl/en/

 

Lazarski University's Law Faculty

Lazarski University's Law Faculty is renowned for its comprehensive and innovative legal education, making it one of the leading law faculties in Poland. The faculty offers a variety of programs, including undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate degrees, all designed to equip students with a profound understanding of both Polish and international law. 

 

The legal clinic at Lazarski University has a strong history of providing practical legal education and services. Established as an integral part of the Faculty of Law and Administration, the clinic offers students hands-on experience by allowing them to provide legal assistance to those in need under the supervision of experienced practitioners. The clinic has been recognized for its excellence and has regularly been rated among the top legal clinics in Poland in the "Rzeczpospolita" ranking for public and non-public university legal clinics, most recently in 2024. See more information on https://www.lazarski.pl/en/university/community/studencka-poradnia-prawna

Partners