Environmental Law Association of South Africa

What Environmental Law Association of South Africa does

The Environmental Law Association of South Africa (ELA) is a non-profit professional membership association founded in 2009 and registered as a South African Public Benefit Organisation (number 930004187). Its stated objective is to promote and assist in the development and application of environmental law and governance in South Africa. The organisation is open to anyone with an active interest in environmental law and serves a horizontally segmented membership comprising legal practitioners, environmental management consultants and assessment practitioners, government officials, academics, students, and environmental activists. ELA is governed by a volunteer Executive Committee led by a Chair (Dr. Melanie Murcott), Vice-chair (Nicola Irving), Treasurer, and National Secretary, with provincial sub-committees across South Africa. The secretariat is hosted at the Faculty of Law, North-West University in Potchefstroom in collaboration with the SARChI Chair in Cities, Law and Environmental Sustainability (CLES).

ELA's core offerings include a membership programme, an Annual and Student Conference series (the 2026 edition is titled 'Glocal Governance in the Age of Triple Planetary Crisis' at North-West University, 6–10 October 2026), a regular member newsletter with legal-development updates, an Environmental Specialists Directory of consultants, legal specialists, and academics, parliamentary and government submissions, research publications, a streaming club for event content, and standard PAIA and POPIA compliance documentation. The underlying technology is a WordPress-based website (elasa.co.za) with a member login area; there is no proprietary AI, software product, or platform technology. The organisation does not hold patents, trademarks, or disclosed APIs.

Revenue is generated through three streams: recurring membership subscriptions, one-time conference registration fees (publicly disclosed for 2026 at R540–R2,000 per attendee depending on category and early-bird status, with an optional R400 Vredefort Dome excursion), and possible directory listing fees. Headcount is stated at 8 employees. Geographic scope is domestic South Africa with no indication of international expansion. The operating model is community-led, with member acquisition occurring through open membership policy, events, newsletters, and the specialist directory. There are no disclosed funding rounds, acquisitions, M&A activity, or external investors; the organisation operates as an independent non-profit without traditional shareholders.

Name

Environmental Law Association of South Africa

Legal name

Environmental Law Association of South Africa

Website

https://elasa.co.za

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Environmental Law Association of South Africa (ELA) is a non-profit professional membership association promoting environmental law development and application in South Africa, serving legal practitioners, consultants, government officials, academics, students, and activists through conferences, a specialist directory, and publications.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Environmental Law Professional Association

NAICS

Business Associations (813910)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Environmental Education & Outreach (BPAGAGAH)

Keywords

• Environmental law association
• Professional membership services
• Legal education conferences
• Environmental governance advocacy
• Specialist directory listings

Headquarters

HQ city

Potchefstroom

HQ country

South Africa

HQ region

Africa

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: ELA generates revenue through membership fees from legal practitioners, environmental consultants, government officials, academics, students, and environmental activists who join the organization.
2. Conference Fees: The organization charges conference registration fees for its Annual and Student Conferences. Fees range from R540-R2000 depending on membership status and registration timing for the 2026 Glocal Governance conference.
3. Directory Listing Fees: The Environmental Specialist Directory lists environmental consultants, legal specialists, and academics. Revenue may be generated through directory inclusion fees.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Environmental Law Association of South Africa (ELA) is a non-profit membership association that promotes and assists in the development and application of environmental law in South Africa. Its core offerings are open membership for legal practitioners, consultants, government officials, academics, students and activists; an Annual and Student Conference series; and an online Environmental Specialist Directory that lists South African environmental consultants, legal specialists and academics.

Product overview

The Environmental Law Association of South Africa (ELA) operates primarily as a non-profit professional membership organization rather than a technology product company. Its main offerings include a website platform (elasa.co.za) for information dissemination, membership services for environmental law professionals, annual and student conferences, publications and submissions to government, a newsletter, an environmental specialists directory, and the ELA Streaming Club. The organization functions as a networked community of legal practitioners, academics, government officials, and environmental activists working to promote and develop environmental law in South Africa.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• ELA Membership Annual membership of the Environmental Law Association of South Africa, open to legal practitioners, environmental consultants, government officials, academics, students and activists with an interest in environmental law; includes newsletter, event discounts, and directory listing eligibility.
• Annual and Student Conferences Multi-day paid professional conferences hosted jointly by ELA and the SARChI Chair in Cities, Law and Environmental Sustainability at North-West University, Potchefstroom; the 2026 edition is 'Glocal Governance in the Age of Triple Planetary Crisis' (6–10 October 2026). Registration is tiered by member status and registration date.
• Environmental Specialists Directory Online directory listing South African environmental consultants, legal specialists and academics who are ELA members, providing contact details and a referral channel for environmental law work.

Named customers4 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• North-West University (SARChI Chair in Cities, Law and Environmental Sustainability)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 October 2026ELA hosts its Annual and Student Conferences in collaboration with the South African Research Chair in Cities, Law and Environmental Sustainability (CLES) at North-West University, Potchefstroom. The 2026 conference on Glocal Governance in the Age of Triple Planetary Crisis is jointly organized.
• SARChI Chair in Law of the Sea and Development in AfricacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDr. Rachael Chasakara works closely with the SARChI Chair in Law of the Sea and Development in Africa at Nelson Mandela University, indicating academic collaboration between ELA members and this research chair.
• Garden Route Biosphere ReserveminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDr. Rachael Chasakara serves as a voting director and post-doctoral research fellow for the Garden Route Biosphere Reserve, advancing sustainable coastal management.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Regional players

• African Wildlife Foundation (AWF): Pan-African conservation organization with policy advocacy on environmental law and governance. Adjacent rather than direct peer, but shares the environmental-policy advocacy space and engages overlapping African stakeholders.
• South African Women in Law Association (SAWLA): South African professional association for women in the legal profession. Operates in the same geographic membership-association space as ELA, with overlapping legal-practitioner members but a broader legal (not environmental) remit.

Emerging players

• Natural Justice: Non-profit organization working at the intersection of environmental law and indigenous/community rights in Africa. Shares the environmental law and community-advocacy space with ELA's activist and academic members.
• Australian Earth Laws Alliance: Non-profit promoting Earth Jurisprudence and rights-of-nature frameworks. ELA's Margot Slabbert volunteers for this group, indicating thematic alignment around Earth-centered environmental law, though it operates as a smaller advocacy organization rather than a professional association.

Broad incumbents

• International Bar Association (IBA) - Environment, Health and Safety Law Committee: Global legal professional body with an EHS law committee serving environmental lawyers. Comparable as a convener of environmental law practitioners, but at global rather than national scale, and not exclusively focused on environmental law.
• IUCN Academy of Environmental Law: Global collegium of environmental law scholars and institutions, several of whose members sit on ELA's executive. Operates internationally with research colloquia and a broader academic mandate that overlaps ELA's scholarly community.
• Environmental Law Institute (ELI): US-based non-profit research and education center on environmental law, governance, and policy. Comparable as a membership-driven environmental law organization producing publications, training, and convenings — but operating at much larger scale and geographic reach.

Direct peers

• International Association for Impact Assessment - South Africa (IAIAsa): South African affiliate of the global IAIAsa, serving environmental assessment practitioners with conferences, training, and professional development. Directly competes for the same environmental consultant and EIA practitioner members ELA serves.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC-EejKuxfWbrtNNVFJBgbuw
• Facebookfacebook.com/Environmental-Law-Association-of-South-Africa-406255049402727
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/environmental-law-association-of-south-africa

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Environmental Law Association of South Africa