Zainab Lokhandwala

Biography

Zainab Lokhandwala is a Lecturer (Assistant Professor) in Sustainability and Environmental Law at the Essex Law School. Her research focuses on food sovereignty in India with specific reference to farmers' biogenetic resource rights. She is interested in environmental law, food and agricultural systems, climate change and justice, and law and natural resources. Zainab has worked at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London as a teaching fellow since 2019. Here she convened and taught several modules, such as international environmental law, multinational enterprises and law, water law and the law and natural resources, in the Law School, Department of Politics and International Studies and the Department of Development Studies. She is also a member of the Law, Environment and Development Centre (LEDC) at SOAS; and has organised a seminar series during 2021-22 at the Centre. Previously, Zainab has worked at the Centre for Comparative Studies at the National Law University Delhi, and the Centre for Regulatory Studies, Governance and Public Policy at the National University of Juridical Studies. She is a qualified advocate on record in the Bar Council of West Bengal, India; and has practiced law at the Calcutta High Court, district courts and tribunals including the National Green Tribunal for 2 years. Zainab's publications focus on environmental law, food sovereignty, peasants rights, agriculture and climate change, and rights of agrarian communities and forest dwellers.

Qualifications

• PhD in Law (graduand) School of Oriental and African Studies, (2024)

• LLM in Environmental Law School of Oriental and African Studies, (2018)

• LLM in International and Comparative Law West Bengal National University of Juridical Sciences, (2015)

• BSL LLB ILS Law College, (2014)

Appointments

Other academic

• Teaching Fellow, Law, School of Oriental and African Studies (1/10/2019 - 15/3/2022)

• Research Associate, National Law University, Delhi (1/1/2017 - 30/9/2017)

• Research Assistant, West Bengal National University of Juridical Sciences (1/4/2015 - 31/12/2016)