From the tip of Southern Africa, I send RIEL and all those involved in its many achievements over the past 40 years, huge congratulations and many thanks. Your contribution to the Chinese, regional and global environmental law and policy discourse has been vast – and will no doubt continue long into the future. I have enjoyed the privilege of working over the years with several members of RIEL and have always been struck by their expertise, commitment, humility and hospitality. My connection began with Professor Tianbao Qin in 2009, conceptualising the IUCNAEL eJournal and then seeing several editions of it through to publication. Prof Qin brought great wisdom and energy to this initiative. Then there was the IUCNAEL’s 7th Annual Colloquium of 2009 hosted by RIEL in Wuhan – characterised by rich academic depth and meticulous organisation. Who can forget the privilege of staying in the beautiful Wuhan East Lake Hotel, and the early morning walks along the shore of the lake chatting to environmental law scholars from around the world. Having the opportunity to teach a lesson to RIEL’s LLM class in advance of the Colloquium also brought home the quality of scholars engaged in their academic programmes. 2015 saw RIEL hosting a Regional Asian Protected Areas Law and Governance Teachers and Trainers Workshop at their Wuhan campus in partnership with the IUCN’s Environmental Law Centre. Working with Prof Qin, Mr Hu Bin, Professor Ben Boer and others on this initiative was hugely energising and rewarding and reaffirmed my impression of RIEL’s vitality and commitment to not only the academic exercise but also the need to build environmental law capacity across all sectors of society. I so fondly remember not only engaging with workshop participants from around Asia during the workshop, but also slipping and sliding around the very icy Mulan Mountain Scenic Area whilst taking the participants on a walk up and down the mountain. May RIEL continue to flourish over the next forty years and may its Chinese Journal of Environmental Law continue to grow in statute and impact. Many congratulations again on your 40th anniversary. 

Professor Alexander Paterson

Institute of Marine and Environmental Law

Faculty of Law

University of Cape Town