In February, West Coast Environmental Law organized the world’s first Twitter moot. As sponsor of Osgoode’s winning team, we are pleased to say it was a resounding success! At one point more people were discussing the Twitter Moot than any other issue in Canada (it was the “trending topic” in the country).
The moot case considered an appeal from the BC Court of Appeal decision in West Moberly First Nations v. British Columbia to the Supreme Court of Twitter. The BC Court of Appeal suspended a permit allowing First Coal Corporation to explore for coal in the habitat of a threatened caribou herd, upholding a decision of the BC Supreme Court that the government had not adequately consulted the West Moberly First Nations on protecting the Burnt Pine caribou herd. Chief Roland Willson, of the West Moberly First Nations, reacting to the decision, said:
Caribou have been a big part of our culture and diet for countless generations. Our traditional hunting practices are our heritage. This judgment supports our efforts to protect this heritage for future generations. … The court has sent a clear message that BC must take proactive steps to protect the integrity of our Treaty rights. Now that the court has affirmed the government’s duty, we look forward to working cooperatively in the coming weeks and months to do what it takes to save this species from extinction.
The transcript is available on line.
Our congratulations to the winning teams -Team Osgoode, the Moot Champions, and Team UVic, winners of the Peoples Choice Award – and to all of the participants. We look forward to hearing more from this next generation of environmental advocates.