Environmental Policy & Law

Fellow Story

Sarah Kapnick named NOAA chief scientist

The Biden-Harris Administration named Sarah Kapnick, Ph.D., as NOAA’s chief scientist. Kapnick will serve as the senior scientist for the agency, advancing policy and program direction for NOAA’s science and technology priorities. “It is an honor to return to NOAA and serve as the chief scientist," said Kapnick.
November 22, 2022
Fellow Story

34 House Members ask EPA to implement Clean Water Act rules on ships' discharges

On June 23, 2022, thirty-four members of the House of Representatives and 74 organizations submitted a letter to the head of the US Environmental Protection Agency requesting the agency to establish discharge standards for ships' ballast water that comply with the Clean Water Act.
July 27, 2022
Fellow Story

Historic environmental justice victory to phase out oil and gas wells in LA

This spring, Zully Jaurez took a deeper dive into how frontline communities in Los Angeles, a city built on the world’s largest urban oil field, mobilized and ultimately won a ban on new oil drilling and begin phasing out existing wells in their city.
July 27, 2022
Fellow

David Herrera

2022 Fellow
David's research explores how environmental justice organizations influence local and state policy through the implementation of community organizing and coalition building strategies.
Fellow

Josephine Benson

2022 Fellow
Josephine Benson is an interdisciplinary scientist and communicator. In her role as Environment, Health and Safety Manager in the private sector, she combines her backgrounds in environmental science and healthcare to support manufacturing...
Fellow

Liz Jacob

2022 Fellow
Liz Jacob (she/her) is working to build a practice of community-based lawyering alongside movements for a just transition. Liz is dedicating her life to working in community to collectively dream and build a transformative new world grounded in mutual aid, justice, and equity so that all people and the planet can thrive. Liz is a recent graduate of Yale Law School and will be serving as a Skadden fellow with the Sugar Law Center for Social and Economic Justice and the Michigan Environmental Justice Coalition, where she will serve as an environmental justice lawyer to advance environmental, climate, and energy justice alongside communities of color and low-income residents in Detroit, Michigan.
Fellow

Amaya Simpson

2022 Fellow
Amaya is an educator and researcher pursuing accessibility of environmental stewardship within the BIPOC community by increasing diverse representation in the classroom and investigating how education and sustainability policy influence environmental justice.
Fellow

Chelsi Sparti

2022 Fellow
Chelsi Sparti is an energy professional with 12+ years of experience in North America, the Caribbean, Asia, and Europe. She holds a Master’s of Energy and Resources from UC Berkeley, and a Bachelor’s degree in Biology from Point Loma Nazarene University. Chelsi currently works for Brookfield Renewable where she studies and responds to electricity policy, regulation, and markets in the Western United States.
Fellow Story

Morello-Frosch publishes on historical racist redlining practices leading to higher exposures to oil and gas wells

The study adds to the evidence that structural racism in federal policy is associated with the disproportionate siting of oil and gas wells in marginalized neighborhoods, and an op-ed argues for considering this history in policy decisions about siting and leasing of new oil and gas drilling.
June 22, 2022
Fellow Story

Sue Chiang: the ‘Disposable’ Foodware Dilemma

In addition to the environmental impact of single-use waste, foodware can contain toxic chemicals that can lead to serious health issues, including reproductive and developmental toxicity, autoimmune and metabolic disorders, respiratory issues, neurodevelopmental effects, and cancer.
May 17, 2022