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Paolo D. Farah, Ph.D.

PROFESSOR OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION AND PUBLIC POLICY

COORDINATOR, EBERLY COLLEGE INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH COLLABORATIVE ON GLOBAL CHALLENGES AND LOCAL RESPONSES INITIATIVES 

DIRECTOR OF THE ENERGY JUSTICE AND JUST TRANSITION LAB AT CENTER FOR RESILIENT COMMUNITIES

Education

  • Visiting Scholar – “Trade Law and Sustainable Energy,” Harvard Law School, East Asian Legal Studies, Boston, USA, 2012
  • Dual PhD – “China’s Integration into the WTO and the EU-China Trade Relations,” Aix-Marseille University, Centre of International and European Research and Studies, France and University of Milan, Doctoral School on International Law, Italy, 2011
  • Fellow at the Institute of International Economic Law (IIEL), Georgetown University Law Center, Washington, D.C., USA, Fall 2004
  • LL.M in European Legal Studies, College of Europe, Bruges, Belgium, 2003
  • J.D. in International and European Law, University of Paris Ouest La Defense Nanterre, France, 2002
Bio

Paolo Davide Farah is a Full Professor of Public Administration and Public Policy (with tenure) at West Virginia University, Eberly College of Arts and Sciences, John D. Rockefeller IV School of Policy and Politics, having joined the faculty in 2014.  

He is Coordinator of the Eberly College Interdisciplinary Research Collaborative on Global Challenges and Local Responses Initiatives and Director of the Energy Justice and Just Transition Lab at Center for Resilient Communities (CRC). 

Professor Paolo Davide Farah is Founder, President and Director of gLAWcal – Global Law Initiatives for Sustainable Development. 

He is also an “Internationally Renowned Professor/Distinguished Professor of Law” (Full Professor level) at Beijing Foreign Studies University (BFSU), Law School, Beijing, China.  

He is also Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of International Economic Law (IIEL), Georgetown University Law Center, Washington DC, USA. 

He is teaching and researching in law, public policy and public administration, democratic context of public administration, legal and political foundations, international law, climate change, international trade, business and human rights, social justice, sustainable development, energy and environmental law and policy. Professor Farah is an expert in the interaction among trade, economic globalization and non-trade concerns, such as sustainable development, energy, environment and human rights. 

He has variously taught classes in different institutions on public international law, international economic law and WTO law, European Law, Comparative law, and Chinese law in Italy (2003-2011), in the UK as Senior Lecturer in Law – Associate Professor (2012-2014), USA and China as Visiting Professor (since 2008).  

He acts as Editor-in-Chief for the Book Series “Transnational Law and Governance” and for the Book Series of “Global Law and Sustainable Development” (in English) published by Routledge (New York/London). He is also Editor-in-Chief for the Book Series "Studies on Globalization" published by Wolters Kluwer (CEDAM) for Books in Italian, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese and other non-English languages. 

He was a Visiting Scholar (2011–2012) at Harvard Law School, East Asian Legal Studies Program. As Scientific Director, since 2006, he has been coordinating the Summer Law Institute in China – Executive Education Training Program (www.summerlawinstitute.com) held in China. He was an International Consultant and Legal Advisor for projects implemented for the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), for the Italian Ministry of Economic Development and Commerce and for the OECD. He has previously worked at the Legal Affairs Division of the World Trade Organization in Geneva and was an Associate Lawyer of Baker & McKenzie Law Firm, Milan, Italy.  

Professor Farah has collaborated in different roles with the European Union Chamber of Commerce in Beijing (China), the China-Italy Chamber of Commerce (CICC) in Beijing (China), Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer – International Law Firm in Beijing (China), Assolombarda (Italian Entrepreneurial Association of Lombardy Region - the largest regional Entrepreneurial Association of Confindustria), ANCI (Italian Association for Shoes Producers), Chamber of Commerce in Milan, Banca Popolare di Milano. 

From 2018 to 2022, he served as an elected Board Member of the European Society of International Law (ESIL) and since 2016 he has been the Chair of the ESIL Interest Group on International Environmental Law (elected for an additional term until 2024). Professor Farah also served as the Vice-Chair (2019 – 2020) and Chair (2020 – 2023) of the American Society of International Law (ASIL) Interest Group on International Environmental Law; the Vice-Chair (2020 – 2021) and Chair (2021 – 2023) of the American Society of International Law (ASIL) Interest Group on International Law and Technology. From 2017 to 2020, he was Chair for the ASIL Interest Group on Intellectual Property Law. 

From 2014 to 2022, Professor Farah was an Appointed Member of the International Law Association – ILA Committees on Sustainable Development and the Green Economy in International Trade Law and ILA Committee on Role of International Law in Sustainable Natural Resource Management for Development. 

Professor Farah has more than 60 peer-reviewed and US law review articles or book chapters, 9 books and 6 journal special issues published or forthcoming and 20 additional peer-reviewed publications in Italian, French, Spanish and Chinese including a book published by the Law Press China. He has presented his work to more than 150 international conferences and workshops.  

Professor Farah was a Guest Editor-in-Chief for the SSCI – Journal of World Energy Law and Business (Oxford University Press), Guest Editor-in-Chief for SSCI Journal Sustainability. 

Professor Farah’ work has appeared or is forthcoming, among others, in such journals as Arizona State Law Journal, Connecticut Law Review, UMKC Law Review, Oregon Law Review, University of Pittsburgh Law Review, West Virginia Law Review, Georgetown International Environmental law Review, Columbia Journal of Asian Law, Duke Environmental Law and Policy Forum, Brooklyn Journal of International Law, Journal of International Economic Law (Oxford University Press), Journal of World Energy Law and Business (Oxford University Press), Journal of World Trade (Kluwer Law International), Leiden Journal of International Law (Cambridge University Press), MDPI Sustainability, Journal of Cleaner Production (Elsevier), Asian Journal of WTO & International Health Law and Policy, Legal Issues of Economic Integration (Kluwer Law International), European Energy and Environmental Law Review (Kluwer Law International). 

Professor Farah has published with such publishers as Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, Taylor & Francis (Routledge Publishing), Edward Elgar, Springer, Elsevier, Palgrave MacMillan. 

He has coordinated and led as Principal Investigator or Major Co-Principal Investigator externally funded research grants for an overall amount of $ 2 million. 

He graduated with a Maitrise in International and European Law from Paris Ouest La Defense Nanterre University (France), LLM in European Legal Studies from the College of Europe in Bruges (Belgium) and a Dual PhD in international law from Aix-Marseille University (France) and University of Milan (Italy). 

He speaks, reads and writes: Italian (native), English (fluent), French (fluent), and Chinese (fair). 

For further information, please visit the following blogs, websites and social networks at: 

  • Twitter: @SLI_China!

Teaching Interests 

  • Democratic Context of Public Administration
  • Legal and Political Foundations
  • Public Policy and Public Administration
  • Human Rights and Social Justice, Climate Justice, Energy Justice
  • Global Challenges and Local Responses
  • Energy Policy, Oil & Gas, Environmental Policy, Natural Resources, Climate Policy, Water
  • International Law, Trade Regulation and WTO, Intellectual Property and New Technologies