Birgit Hollaus

Birgit Hollaus is a Teaching and Research Associate at the Institute for Law and Governance and the Research Institute for Urban Management and Governance at Vienna University of Economics and Business (WU), holding a doctoral degree in business law from the same institution.

Her academic credentials include:

• Bachelor's degree in Business Law, WU Vienna
• Master's degree in Business Law, WU Vienna
• Doctoral degree in Business Law, WU Vienna

Hollaus specializes in national and European environmental, planning, and infrastructure law with concentrated expertise in public participation and access to justice mechanisms. Her research spans species protection legislation in urban contexts, EU risk governance frameworks for genetically modified organisms, and Aarhus Convention implementation at both EU and national levels. Her doctoral thesis critically analyzed compliance mechanisms in multilateral environmental agreements including the Paris Agreement and CITES, examining EU law's capacity to engage with non-compliance procedures while maintaining its position as an environmental leader. She continues to investigate the complex interplay between international environmental law and EU legal frameworks.

She actively contributes to the European Environmental Law Forum (EELF) and the Climate Change Centre Austria Working Group on Climate Change Law (ARGE KlimaSchutzRecht). Professional experience includes an internship at Vienna's environmental protection authority (MA 22), legal work at environmental NGO ClientEarth in London, and project management roles at Vasko+Partner Civil Engineers prior to her academic career.