Bettina Lange
Associate Professor of Law and Regulation
Other affiliations
Wolfson College
Biography
Bettina Lange’s main research interests are in nature and society interactions in environmental law ‘in action’. This involves analysis of options for and limits to state law as a mode of regulation.
Bettina is also interested in institutional governance structures for regulation in the context of EU co-ordination of education policy objectives, such as through the Open-Method of Co-ordination.
Her research is based on qualitative empirical data, analysed through a ‘grounded theory’ approach or discourse analysis. Some of her work is informed by social theoretical lenses, such as systems-theory, regulatory space analysis and governmentality perspectives. Her research has been funded by the ESRC, NERC, BA, DAAD and OU John Fell Fund.
Some of Bettina’s research engages public policy makers and regulators. She has co-produced with the Rivers Trust ‘Guidelines for Integrated Drought Management’, published at the UK government’s CaBA site. She has also carried out consultancy for the Environment Agency on trust-based environmental regulation.
Bettina has been a Jean-Monnet Fellow at the European University Institute. Her first book Implementing EU Pollution Control: Law and Integration (2008) Cambridge University Press, was nominated for the Peter Birks prize for outstanding legal scholarship. Her article with Mark Shepheard ‘Changing conceptions of rights to water? An eco-socio-legal perspective’ won jointly the Journal of Environmental Law Richard Macrory best article prize 2014.
Bettina was shortlisted for an OU SU ‘supervisor of the year’ award in 2017, and nominated again in 2018. She has successfully supervised to completion 24 DPhils and 9 MPhils.
Degrees: BA (Law and Sociology), Warwick University, MA (Oxon), PhD (Law) Warwick University.
Publications
Lange B, Williams P and Bendall B, ‘Increasing access to water through flexible entitlements?’ (2023) 25(1) Environmental Law Review 28
Lange B, ‘Interdisciplinary Hazards: insights from a multi-sectoral study of drought’’ [2020] (12) Sustainability 7183
Lange B, Holman I and Bloomfield J, ‘A framework for a joint hydro-meteorological-social analysis of drought.’ (2017) 578 The Science of the Total Environment 297
Lange B and Cook C, ‘Mapping a developing governance space: managing drought in the UK’ (2015) 68(1) Current Legal Problems 229
Alexiadou N and Lange B, ‘Europeanizing the National Education Space? Adjusting to the Open Method of Coordination (OMC) in the UK’ (2015) 38(3) INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION 157
Lange B and Haines F, ‘Regulatory Transformations: An Introduction’
Lange B, ‘EU Environmental Law, Governance and Decision-Making, 2nd edition’ (2015) 27(2) JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL LAW 362
Lange B and Shepheard M, ‘Changing Conceptions of Rights to Water?-An Eco-Socio-Legal Perspective’ (2014) 26(2) JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL LAW 215
Alexiadou N and Lange B, ‘Deflecting European Union Influence on National Education Policy-Making: The Case of the United Kingdom’ (2013) 35(1) JOURNAL OF EUROPEAN INTEGRATION 37
Lange B, ‘FROM POLANYI TO DISCOURSE THEORY’ (2013) 62 FROM ECONOMY TO SOCIETY?: PERSPECTIVES ON TRANSNATIONAL RISK REGULATION 73
Lange B, ‘AFTER A ROMANTIC ASPIRATION TO SOCIETY: HARNESSING THE REGULATORY CAPACITY OF A SOCIAL SPHERE’ (2013) 62 FROM ECONOMY TO SOCIETY?: PERSPECTIVES ON TRANSNATIONAL RISK REGULATION 1
Castellano G, Jeunemaître A and Lange B, ‘Reforming European Union Financial Regulation: Thinking through Governance Models’ (2012) 23(3) European Business Law Review
Faulkner A, Lange B and Lawless C, ‘Introduction: Material Worlds: Intersections of Law, Science, Technology, and Society’ (2012) 39(1) JOURNAL OF LAW AND SOCIETY 1
Lange B, ‘THE PARADOX OF REGULATION’ (2012) 90(3) PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION 842
Lange B, ‘Socializing Economic Relationships: A Critique of Business Regulation: Introduction’ (2011) 62(4) Northern Ireland Legal Quarterly 393
Lange B, ‘The EU Directive on Industrial Emissions: Squaring the Circle of Integrated, Harmonised and Ambitious Technology Standards?’ (2011) 13 Environmental Law Review 169
Alexiadou N, Fink-Hafner D and Lange B, ‘Education policy convergence through the open method of coordination: Theoretical reflections and implementation in ’old’ and ’new’ national contexts’ (2010) 9(3) European Educational Research Journal 345
Lange B and Alexiadou N, ‘Governing through learning about policy: just all words? An Introduction to policy learning in the context of open methods of co-ordinating education in the European Union’ (2010) 25(4) Journal of Education Policy 443
Lange B and Alexiadou N, ‘Policy learning and governance of education policy in the EU’ (2010) 25(4) JOURNAL OF EDUCATION POLICY 443
Lange B, ‘Media Regulation and ""Celebrity Big Brother’: Some Critical Reflections’ (2010) 7(2) Journal of Entertainment and Sports Law
Fisher E, Lange B, Scotford E, and others, ‘Maturity and methodology: Starting a debate about environmental law scholarship’ (2009) 21(2) Journal of Environmental Law 213
Lange B and Alexiadou N, ‘New forms of European Union governance in the education sector? A preliminary analysis of the open method of coordination’ (2007) 6(4) European Educational Research Journal 321
Lange B, ‘How Law Works in the Real World - A Critical Commentary on the Nuffield Inquiry into Empirical Legal Research’ (2007) 28(2) Zeitschrift Fuer Rechtssoziologie 139
Lange B, ‘Searching for the Best Available Techniques - Open and Closed Norms in the Implementation of the EU Directive on Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control’ (2006) 2(1) International Journal of Law in Context 67
Lange B, ‘Regulatory Spaces and Interactions: An Introduction’ [2003] Social and Legal Studies 411
Lange B, ‘From Boundary Drawing to Transitions: the Creation of Normativity under the EU Directive on Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control’ (2002) 8(1) European Law Journal 246
Lange B, ‘What does Law Know? Prescribing and Describing the Social World in the Enforcement of Legal Rules’ (2002) 30 International Journal of the Sociology of Law 131
Lange B, ‘The Emotional Dimension in Legal Regulation’ (2002) 29 Journal of Law and Society 197
Lange B, ‘Economic Appraisal and Changing Forms of Governance’ (2000) 63(2) Modern Law Review 294
Lange B, ‘Compliance Construction in the Context of Environmental Regulation’ (1999) 8(4) Social and Legal Studies 549
Lange B, ‘National Environmental Regulation? A Case Study of Waste Management in England and Germany’ (1999) 11(1) Journal of Environmental Law 59
Lange B, ‘Understanding Regulatory Law: Empirical vs. Systems-Theoretical Approaches?’ (1998) 18(3) Oxford Journal of Legal Studies 449
FISHER E, LANGE B and Scotford E, Environmental Law: Text, Cases and Materials (Oxford University Press 2019)
LANGE B, Scotford E and FISHER E, Environmental Law: Text, Cases and Materials (Oxford University Press 2013)
Lange B, Implementing EU Pollution Control: Law and Integration (Cambridge University Press 2008)
Lange B, ‘Regulation without actors? ’a Luhmannian conception of interests’’ in C Campilongo, M Antonio Loschiavo Leme de Barros and L Fucci Amato (eds.), Luhmann and Socio-Legal Research: An Empirical Agenda for Social Systems Theory (Routledge 2020)
Lange B, ‘Sociology of regulation’, Research Handbook on the Sociology of Law (2020)
Lange B, ‘Chapter 38: Command and Control Standards and Cross-Jurisdictional Harmonization’ in E Lees and J Viñuales (eds.), Oxford Handbook in Comparative Environmental Law (Oxford University Press 2019)
Lange B, ‘How to think about ’nature-society’ interactions in environmental law ’in action’’, Research Methods in Environmental Law: A Handbook (2017)
Lange B, ‘Regulating economic activity through performative discourses: a case study of the European Union (EU) carbon market’, Regulatory Transformations: Rethinking Economy and Society Interactions (Hart Publishing, Onati Socio-Legal Series 2015)
Lange B, ‘After a romantic aspiration to society: Harnessing the regulatory capacity of a social sphere’, Lange, Haines and Thomas (eds) From Economy to Society? Perspectives on Transnational Risk Regulation (Emerald -Studies in Law, Politics and Society 2013)
Lange B, ‘Getting to yes: structuring and disciplining arguments for and against transgenic agricultural products in European Union authorisations’ (2012)
Lange B, ‘Thinking about procedure: understanding legitimacy in EU environmental governance networks’ in O Dilling, M Herberg and G Winter (eds.), Transnational Administrative Rule-Making: Performance, Legal Effects and Legitimacy (Hart 2011)
Lange B, ‘Foucauldian-inspired discourse analysis A contribution to critical environmental law scholarship?’, LAW AND ECOLOGY: NEW ENVIRONMENTAL FOUNDATIONS (2011)
Lange B, ‘Procedure and Legitimacy in Environmental Networks’ in O Dilling, M Herberg and G Winter (eds.), Transnational Administrative Rule-Making: Performance, Legal Effects, and Legitimacy (Hart Publishing 2011)
Alexiadou N and Lange B, ‘The Open Method of Co-ordination and the Governance of Education in Europe’ in A Pitsela (ed.), Criminology: Searching for Answers, Honorary Volume for Professor Stergios Alexiadis (Sakkoula 2010)
Lange B and Alexiadou N, ‘How to govern for solidarity?’ in M Ross and Y Borgman-Prebil (eds.), Developing Solidarity in the EU: Citizenship, Governance and New Constitutional Paradigms (Oxford University Press 2010)
Lange B, ‘Regulation’ in P Cane and J Conaghan (eds.), The New Oxford Companion to Law (2008)
Lange B, ‘How to Conceptualize law in European Union integration processes? - Perspectives from the literature and empirical research’ in V Gessner (ed.), European Ways of Law (Hart Publishing 2007)
Lange B, ‘Social Dynamics of Regulatory Interactions: An Exploration of Three Sociological Perspectives’ in M Freedman (ed.), Law and Sociology (Oxford University Press 2006)
Lange B, ‘Researching Discourse and Behaviour as Elements of Law in Action’ in R Banakar and M Travers (eds.), Theory and Method in Socio-Legal Research (Hart Publishing 2005)
Lange B, ‘Europeanization or Localization of Law? the Example of the Enforcement of Environmental Policies in Germany’ in C Harding and A Swart (eds.), Enforcing European Community Rules (Dartmouth 1996)
Lange B, Haines F and Thomas D, Regulatory Transformations: Rethinking Economy and Society Interactions (Hart Publishing, Onati Socio-Legal Series 2015)
Lange B, Thomas D and Sarat A, From Economy to Society? Perspectives on Transnational Risk Regulation (Emerald -Studies in Law, Politics and Society 2013)
Lange B, ‘An eco-socio-legal perspective on property rights in natural resources - The Case of Water’ (Oxford University Press, 1 November 2017)
Lange B and Gouldson A, ‘Trust-based environmental regulation.’ (2010) 408(22) The Science of the Total Environment 5235 (review)