The Institute on Land Use and Sustainable Development Law, in partnership with the planning, development, and environmental communities of Long Island and the rest of metropolitan New York City, fosters greater understanding of local land use law, environmental law, and public policy by providing a forum for dialogue as well as resources such as model laws, best practice commentaries, and training and education for lawyers and the larger community.

Land use and sustainability law provides one of the most effective means—if not the most effective means—for addressing some of our region's pressing social concerns, including housing affordability, the retrofitting of suburbia to promote more sustainable development, climate change, natural disaster resiliency, and the management of water resources.

I am honored to follow in the footsteps of Professor Sarah Adams-Schoen and Judge Leon Lazer, the two most recent leaders of these efforts at the Law Center, and to work with the support of a distinguished Advisory Board and national land use law expert Provost and Professor of Law Patricia Salkin.

Michael E. Lewyn