On June 16, 2016, the New York State Senate passed the
Elephant Protection Act in a unanimous 62-0 vote. The bill
was conceived and written by students in Dyson College's
Environmental Policy Clinic. The bill effectively bans the
use of elephants as entertainment in circuses and other
venues in New York State, and is the first of its kind
in New York to succeed in doing so. Other similar,
but less far-reaching, attempts have failed in both
houses of the state legislature.
New York State Senator Terrence Murphy
fought for the bill's passage, acting as chief
sponsor of the bill in the senate. After
the vote, he commented, "entertainment
elephants are finally on their way out, and I
owe it all to the Pace students."
Students in the Environmental
Policy Clinic drafted the bill
and 1,100 members of the Pace
community signed a petition in
support of its passage.
Housed under the Dyson College
Institute for Sustainability and the
Environment, the Environmental Policy Clinic trains
students to research and draft policy reforms,
tackling real-world environmental issues such as
wildlife corridors and a ban on microbeads.
Saving the Elephant in the Room
10
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Dyson Year in Review
IN
THE
NEWS
