The Environmental Lawyers Network of Namibia (ELNN) is a voluntary association aiming to creating collaborative relationships that contribute to the promotion, development and application of sound environmental laws and policies in Namibia.
ELNN was founded in 2020 by a group of passionate environmental lawyers and environmental assessment practitioners.
In addition, the platform aims to facilitate the sharing of knowledge, information and content that protects and conserves the natural environment while promoting environmental justice for local communities and for Namibian citizens at large.
Through the exchange of information and ideas, the network aims to promote the sustainable and equitable use of natural resources, democracy and good governance in the natural resources and environmental sector.
The ELNN, as a platform, can benefit environmental lawyers and organisations who represent clients or who themselves deal in environmental matters, to advocate for development in environmental policy and law.
The primary aims of ELNN include –
Environmental law is a relatively new and exciting field that has evolved rapidly over the last 30 years, specifically in the climate emergency context. The areas of common interest that ELNN’s platform focuses on consist of a broad range of environmental concerns such as forest resource management, issues related to food security, renewable energy, air and water quality / pollution, climate change, land use and related agricultural issues, parks, game reserves and wilderness preservation, wildlife and biodiversity protection, as well as problems concerned with resource extraction and transportation, chemicals and pesticides and waste disposal.
Munolwisho is an experienced Corporate Lawyer. She currently works at GIZ as Green Hydrogen Advisor. Prior to joining GIZ, she worked for PowerCom (Pty) Ltd. as a Company Secretary and Legal Advisor.
In addition, she worked at the National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia (NAMCOR) as the Contracts Management and Commercial Officer in the Legal Division.
She was always passionate about Climate Change and serving her country. In 2016, she served as the Chairperson of UNAM’s Environmental Society, as a student leader.
Munolwisho holds a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) Honours degree from the University of Namibia (UNAM) and a Master’s degree in law (LLM), specializing in marine and environmental law, from the University of Cape Town and currently pursuing a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Strategic Management with Stellenbosch University, South Africa.
Stefanie is a legal practitioner practicing at ENSafrica Namibia, which forms part of ENSafrica, being Africa’s largest law firm. She specialises in energy law, environmental law and project development.
Stefanie represents various clients in the green energy space in Namibia, including companies focusing on solar, wind, biomass and, more recently, green hydrogen.
Stefanie holds a law degree and a bachelor’s degree in Media from the University of Cape Town, as well as a general law masters from the University of Cape Town, focusing in part on environmental law.
Currently she is undertaking her Advanced Masters in Energy Law with the North Sea Energy Law Partnership, which is hosted jointly by the Universities of Groningen, Oslo, Aberdeen and Copenhagen. By virtue of this programme, Stefanie is exposed to different jurisdiction’s legislative approaches to different aspects of the energy industry, which includes a focus on green energy, energy trading and investments, climate change law and sustainability.
Des-Rose is a BcomLLB graduate currently working as a consultant in Risk Advisory at Deloitte Namibia.
She focuses primarily on forensic, compliance, and internal audit services. She is also serving on the Deloitte Africa NextGen Advisory Council where she engages leadership on strategic and organisational challenges relating to climate change impact.
Before joining Deloitte, Des-Rose worked as a research assistant at the Stellenbosch University Department of Economics for two years.
She has previously served on various student leadership platforms including the Stellenbosch University Student Court, the SRC Disciplinary Committee, the Namibian Students Society, as well as the United Nations Association of South Africa, Stellenbosch chapter.
Des-Rose is passionate about responsible business and transparent leadership relating to environmental management and sustainable development.
Alina is a Policy Analyst at the Procurement Policy Unit, Ministry of Finance. She previously worked as an Assistant Legal Officer at the Motor Vehicle Accident Fund. Alina is passionate about environmental law and its preservation.
Alina holds a Bachelor of Law Honors (LLB) from the University of Namibia, and during her LLB she has done Environmental law, Mining Law, Comparative Law as some of her electives. She is currently a Candidate Legal Practitioner at the Justice Training Centre, working towards getting admitted in the High Court.
Her work experience at both the MVA Fund and the Ministry of Finance has equipped her knowledge in Legal Advice, Risk and Compliance, Drafting of Contracts, Board Secretarial work, General administrative and Secretarial Work, stakeholder engagements just to mention a few. Alina believes this experience equips her as a great asset to the Environmental Lawyers Network of Namibia.
Emilia is a seasoned professional with 20+ years' expertise in Accounting, Finance & Administration. She excels at strategic planning, budgeting, team building & nurturing, leadership.
She contributes to sustainable socio-economic development, she is currently a Legal Practitioner candidate.
Simon is a Marketing and Communications specialist at the University of Namibia. He has over 8 years of professional experience in branding, communications and marketing.
He specialises in marketing campaign ideas for targeted markets; he possesses copyediting and copywriting skills; proficient on social media platforms; content development and media relations and project supervision.
He holds a Bachelor of Commerce in Business Management & Accountancy from the University of Namibia; a Postgraduate Diploma specialising in Marketing from Stellenbosch University; and a Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) in Management Strategy from the University of Namibia.
His interests include marketing, AI in the 4IR and content curation in the digital age. He is an awardee of the Honorary Senior Professional Fellow from Cardiff University, Wales (2020).
Carol-lee is a Corporate Lawyer and Environmental Law Specialist who currently works at the Environmental Investment Fund of Namibia as Corporate Secretary, Legal Advisor and Compliance Officer.
Prior to joining the Environmental Investment Fund, she worked for Brockerhoff and Attorneys Inc. as an Environmental Law Specialist. In addition, she worked at the reserve Bank of Namibia as a Legal Advisor in the Legal Division, and previously a Senior Policy Analyst in the Banking Supervision Department. She was also the Southern Africa (Namibia) representative at the Afronomics Law Forum, where she performed research and contributed to research articles.
Her previous work was mostly devoted to environmental law research, drafting, and policy reform and development. Carol-lee has always been enthusiastic about policy reform and research, as well as expanding Namibia’s research and policy-making capacity.
Carol-lee holds a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) Honours degree from the University of Namibia (UNAM), and a Master’s degree in law (LLM), specializing in marine and environmental law, from the University of Cape Town.
The Environmental Lawyers Network of Namibia (ELNN) is a voluntary association aiming to creating collaborative relationships that contribute to the promotion, development and application of sound environmental laws and policies in Namibia.
In addition, the Network aims to facilitate the sharing of knowledge, information and content that protects and conserves the natural environment while promoting environmental justice for local communities and for Namibian citizens at large. This includes the hosting of workshops and webinars, as well as knowledge sharing via social media and our mailing list.
ELNN is a non-profit organization. It coordinates a number of various initiatives in order to help people interested in environmental law communicate and connect.
The blog's goal is to educate, inform, and encourage people to care about the environment, conservation, and sustainable development. As well as encouraging Namibians to participate in environmental law and policy activities.
Individuals
Membership is open to anyone who is passionate about the environment, as well as demonstrates an active interest in the development and application of environmental law in Namibia.
Members do not have to practice law or have any legal knowledge or experience to join!
Corporates or Public Sector
Membership is open to any corporation, association or public entity which seeks to engage with the Namibian public and other relevant stakeholders or industry leaders in respect of environmental issues.
Membership is free – just complete our application form here.
Members can be as involved as they wish to be in the ELNN. This may range from merely receiving important updates and information on environmental law issues in Namibia, to volunteering to participate in panels, conferences and workshops in respect of a particular field of expertise.
Members can also be invited to join working groups on specific environmental issues or to apply to become a member of the Executive Committee of the ELNN.
Therefore, your intended involvement in the ELNN is completely up to you 😊