Special Committee for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging

SEER understands that a diverse Section and EER bar – both made up of people of color; women; LGBTQ+; persons with mental, physical, and sensory disabilities; younger attorneys; as well as attorneys from the government, non-profit, academia, and solo-practice sectors – add great value to the legal profession.

To foster this kind of diverse and inclusive community, SEER will also implement processes to promote diversity in its committee leaders, publications, programming, and conference speakers and create substantive programming to address environmental justice issues.  SEER will build on existing diversity-focused committees and programs – the Special Committee on Outreach and Membership Diversity Enhancement Program (MDEP) – to identify diverse talent and connect these leaders with speaking, writing, and leadership opportunities that will add significant value to their careers.

SEER will also work with outside organizations to create programming aimed to recruit, retain, and promote diverse attorneys within their workplaces. Ultimately, we aspire to make SEER and the EER bar more diverse, equitable, and inclusive – models that the ABA and the legal profession should aspire to emulate in the years ahead.

Committee Goals

Making Change Within SEER

• Increase by 10% the number of diverse attorneys who are committee leaders (e.g., chairs or vice chairs) and publication authors;
• Achieve greater diversity among the speakers for the Fall and Spring conferences, one-day programs, and CLE webinars;  
• Create ABA SEER programming that addresses implicit bias;
• Ensure that ABA SEER programming includes environmental justice perspectives;
• Enhance the MDEP program and work to ensure that the program has (1) a full slate of candidates each year, (2) full support from the executive and council leadership teams, and (3) a direct pipeline to SEER leadership; and
• Create a SEER diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging webpage with useful resources and an environmental justice webpage with useful resources.

Making Change Within the EER Bar

• Collaborate with ally bar associations and professional legal organizations to create programming and solicit speakers, authors, and members to promote diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging within law firms;
• Partner with ally bar associations and professional legal organizations to create programming that aims to increase the pipeline of a more diverse set of law students and young lawyers interested in environmental law;
• Create programming that focuses on environmental justice issues across the country;
• Create publications and programming that address implicit bias, e.g., to assist law firm-based environmental attorneys with awareness and to assist them in supporting the goals of diverse and inclusive law firms in their own workplaces; and
• Work with law school environmental and energy law societies to engage diverse student groups within their law schools on how environmental, energy, and resource issues are relevant to these groups and interact with environmental and energy law societies to help them accomplish this goal.

Committee Mission Statement

The purpose of the ABA Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources' (SEER) Special Committee for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion is to enhance and promote diversity, equity, and inclusion within the Section and within the environmental, energy, and resources (EER) bar overall. SEER understands that a diverse Section and EER bar – both made up of people of color, women, LGBTQ+, and younger attorneys, as well as attorneys from the government, non-profit, academia, and solo-practice sectors – add great value to the legal profession. To foster this kind of diverse and inclusive community, the committee intends to examine the makeup of SEER’s committee leaders, publications, programming, and speakers. We intend to work with SEER’s existing diversity-focused committees and programs – the Special Committee on Outreach and Membership Diversity Enhancement Program (MDEP) – to identify diverse talent and connect these leaders with speaking, writing, and leadership opportunities that will add significant value to their careers. We will also work with ABA SEER to create substantive programming to address environmental justice issues. In addition, we will work with outside organizations to create programming aimed to recruit, retain, and promote diverse attorneys within their workplaces. Ultimately, we aspire to make SEER and the EER bar more diverse, equitable, and inclusive – models that the ABA and the legal profession should aspire to emulate in the years ahead.

SEER Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging Action Plan

SEER’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging Goal is to increase equity, inclusion, and diversity in Section membership, committees, leadership, programs, publications, and further the ABA Goal III, which is to eliminate bias and enhance diversity. Read SEER's formal action plan for achieving this goal here.

SEER Mission Statement and Strategic Plan

SEER’s mission is to foster the success of a diverse community of environmental, energy, and resources lawyers, advisors, law students, and decision-makers and provide a premier forum for the exchange of ideas and information. SEER's strategic plan, which includes building a diverse community, is available here.