Director of the Guarini Center, University Professor Richard Stewart recently published Fuel Cycle to Nowhere: U.S. Law and Policy on Nuclear Waste, co-authored with Jane Stewart ’79, director of the Guarini Center’s International Legal Assistance Program. The book provides the first comprehensive history and account of U.S. nuclear waste law and policy and recommends significant changes in existing laws and institutions. The NYU Environmental Law Journal will shortly publish an article by the Stewarts, Solving the Nuclear Waste Impasse, which addresses how the country can deal with the ever growing stockpiles of wastes at nuclear power plants in light of post-Fukushima concerns about storage safety and the continuing political impasses over development of a repository for waste disposal. The article recommends development of consolidated interim storage facilities of spent nuclear fuel as necessary and desirable measure, and details a strategy for doing so.

Stewart continues his research and participation in climate regulation and finance issues and proceedings, including recent presentations on the development of a new “building block” strategy of multiple, specialized   transnational regulatory and other forms of cooperation among a limited number of governments, firms, substantial jurisdictions, and civil society organizations on actions that will have the effect (but not necessarily the aim) of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. A preliminary version of this strategy is presented in Richard Stewart, Michael Oppenheimer & Bryce Rudyk “A Bottom Up Strategy for Climate Action” 13 (2) Theoretical Inquiries in Law (forthcoming 2012). This approach is designed to fill the void created by the failure of UNFCCC negotiations to produce a treaty and stimulate progress in mitigation and build webs of trust that will support eventual development of a treaty.

Stewart also continues his work on Global Administrative Law, with a focus on the governance of global regulation in environmental and other fields. He has published, with Benedict Kingsbury, “Administrative Tribunals of International Organizations from the Perspective of the Emerging Global Administrative Law” in “The Development and Effectiveness of International Administrative Law” (Olufemi Elias, ed. 2012). He is teaching on law and global governance at Yale Law School this fall.