Hanze University of Applied Sciences (Hanze UAS) is excited to announce the next Jean Monnet Chair seminar, featuring the distinguished Professor Hanna Tolsma. An expert in administrative and environmental law, Professor Tolsma brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the event.
Professor Tolsma, born in Leeuwarden in 1980, graduated in Dutch Law with a specialization in Constitutional and Administrative Law from the University of Groningen. She completed her PhD in 2008 with the dissertation “Bemiddelend Bestuur: Juridische aspecten van bemiddeling bij de bestuurlijke besluitvorming” (Mediating Government: Legal Aspects of Mediation in Administrative Decision-Making). From 2009 to 2013, she worked as a postdoc researcher on a project funded by the NWO exploring the legal possibilities of environmental permits with integrated interest assessments.
In 2020, Professor Tolsma was appointed as Professor of Decision-Making and Legal Protection in Environmental Law under the Aletta Jacobs Stimulus Fund. Her 2023 inaugural lecture addressed the topic “Accessible and Quick Procedures: Can the Environmental Act be Improved?” She regularly publishes on general administrative (procedural) law and environmental law, with her research focusing on the legal aspects of decision-making procedures, the scope of interest assessments, and the role and access to the judiciary.
Since 2023, Professor Tolsma has been a member of the Evaluation Committee for the Environmental Act and the Council for the Living Environment and Infrastructure, where she contributed to the advisory report “Judging the Right Balance” on the legalisation of the living environment. In recent years, court cases about what should and should not be permitted in our living environment have attracted increasing attention. Such cases are often initiated by members of the public, companies, public authorities, and special-interest organisations such as Urgenda, who are concerned about the consequences of emissions and discharges from industrial and agricultural enterprises. They turn to the courts to ensure better enforcement of rules to protect nature and the environment, often as a response to poor enforcement of environmental permits by the authorities or failure to update them in good time. This advisory report explores how to interpret ‘juridification’ in the living environment, identifying genuine problems and proposing solutions to address them.
Additionally, Professor Tolsma holds honorary positions as a substitute judge at the Noord-Nederland District Court and as a member and deputy chair of the objections committee of the Ministry of Health, Welfare, and Sport (VWS).
We are honored to host Professor Tolsma for what promises to be an enlightening and insightful seminar. Her expertise in administrative law, environmental law, and legal protection is sure to captivate the international business MBA students and the broader Hanze UAS community. The seminar is organized by Dr Beata Kviatek, Jean Monnet Chair in Sustainable EU Economy, with a help of Reinaert Jongsma, Student Assistant to the Jean Monnet Chair in Sustainable EU Economy.
Join us for this engaging seminar:
📅 Date: Tuesday, 14 January 2025 🕜 Time: 12:30 📍 Location: Hanze University of Applied Sciences
Don’t miss this opportunity to gain valuable insights from one of the leading experts in the field. We look forward to welcoming you!
