Institute for Energy and the Environment

Research Associates

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DANIELLE CHANGALA

MELP 2010/JD Candidate 2013

Danielle Changala graduated cum laude from the University of California, San Diego with a double major in political science and psychology. After college, Danielle interned with New Generation Energy, a non-profit renewable investment firm focusing on extending capital from private investors to community-level renewable energy projects. Danielle completed her Masters in Environmental Law and Policy in 2010 while earning the Certificate in Energy Law. Danielle spent last summer interning with the Conservation Law Foundation in Boston where she worked in the Clean Energy and Climate Change program area. Danielle was published in the Energy Law Journal in 2011 for her article analyzing the necessary legal regimes for successful implementation of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles.

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SHANNON CLARKE

JD Candidate 2013

Shannon Clarke received a B.A. in Sociology from the University of North Florida. During her undergraduate education, she worked as a research assistant for the Journal of Energy Security. After graduating, she was hired as an energy and environmental intern for the National Association of Counties (NACo). At NACo, Shannon provided technical support to counties on renewable energy, energy-efficiency and sustainable development. Most recently, Shannon was the local government relations consultant for the American Institute of Architects’ (AIA) national office in Washington, D.C.. At AIA, she conducted research on local government sustainability, green building policy and green economic development. Shannon was a political consultant for a county in Florida, and was awarded a fellowship to work at the Democratic National Committee. She has interned for a U.S. Senate Homeland Security subcommittee and the Office of U.S. Senator Bill Nelson. Shannon is the content editor of the Forum, Vermont Law School’s student-run newspaper, and chair of the Business Law Society’s Entrepreneurship Collaborative. Shannon’s interests include: energy infrastructure development, entrepreneurship, and rural electrification.

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LAURA COLANGELO

JD Candidate 2012

Laura Colangelo graduated summa cum laude from the University of Notre Dame, where she founded the total immersion-based ND Italian Theater Company and subsequently spent several years teaching and directing plays in Italian. Shifting careers, she then earned an MS in Aquatics and Water Policy from the School of Natural Resources and Environment at the University of Michigan. Her Masters Project team created a 10-year strategic and financial plan for a client nonprofit organization that sought to incorporate social enterprise into its programming. Laura has worked with the USGS and the Huron River Watershed Council on stream monitoring, mapping, and statistical graphing. She founded and currently chairs the VLS Freshwater Working Group, and is an active member of the VLS Environmental Law Society and the Dispute Resolution Society. Laura’s interests include the effects of hydropower on aquatic ecosystems and the use of collaborative processes in energy policy creation.

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MEREDITH CRAFTON

JD/MELP Candidate 2012

Meredith Crafton is pursuing a JD, a Master of Environmental Law and Policy, and an Energy Law Certificate from Vermont Law School. She is also the Co-Chair of the Equal Justice Foundation and the Advocacy Chair of the Environmental Law Society, and looks forward to a career working for energy justice and sustainability. Meredith’s passion for public interest law has been reinforced through recent internships with the Environmental & Natural Resources Law Clinic and the South Royalton Legal Clinic. Meredith completed her undergraduate at Hampshire College in 2004 with a degree in Sustainability Studies, where she worked on the college’s organic farm and for the Civil Liberties and Public Policy Program. After graduating, Meredith spent a year living on Mount Rainier and then moved to Seattle where she worked for the Government Accountability Project’s Nuclear Oversight Program. While there, Meredith organized an international conference in St. Petersburg, Russia for activists, lawyers, scientists, engineers and whistleblowers. She also coordinated an investigation into a whistleblower’s concerns regarding quality assurance and safety at Hanford’s Waste Treatment Plant, which was featured on 60 Minutes. Meredith then assisted in the formation of Hanford Challenge, a Seattle-based non-profit organization devoted to overseeing and improving the cleanup underway at the Hanford Nuclear Site. Meredith has also been known to run away with the circus and pursue her love of acrobatic jump rope through performing with a variety of companies, including Ropeworks and Cirque du Soleil Special Events.

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JAY EIDSNESS

JD Candidate 2013

Jay Eidsness graduated with a BA from Saint John’s University in central Minnesota. His undergraduate studies centered on biology, with specific emphasis on ecology and plant science. In the spring of 2007, Jay collected botanical data in backcountry Idaho as part of a biological opinion commissioned by the US Forest Service. His involvement with the biological opinion gave him an inside view as to how national environmental law and policy plays out in the field, which ultimately spurred his decision to attend law school at VLS. During the summer of 2011, Jay worked for Central Minnesota Legal Services, a legal aid law firm in Minneapolis. His experience at CMLS gave him a greater knowledge of the legal process and cemented his desire to advocate on behalf of the marginalized and voiceless. At VLS Jay has focused his extracurricular activities on community building. He is currently mentoring a second grader at a neighboring elementary school and partnering with community members and fellow students to provide a free meal every Friday night. Jay’s activities include gardening, soccer, and biking to and from work in the subzero temperatures of his native Minneapolis.

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COLIN HAGAN

JD Candidate 2012

Colin Hagan holds a BA in political science and English from Furman University. Colin previously served as the Federal Policy Associate at the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy. He analyzed legislation, served as a liaison to Congress and authored testimony for several congressional hearings on energy legislation. In law school, Colin has researched constitutional issues related to federal climate legislation and served as a law clerk at the Clean Air Task Force, where he researched legal issues related to air toxics, greenhouse gases and renewable fuels. He has also served in the Summer Honors Program at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of General Counsel, focusing on federal air pollution regulation. Colin’s work at the Institute has involved carbon capture and sequestration, energy efficiency financing, privacy regulations for Smart Grid data, and renewable energy integration into the electric grid. In 2011, the Robert and Patricia Switzer Foundation selected Colin as a Switzer Environmental Fellow. His article, “Closing the Gap: Using the Clean Air Act to Control Lifecycle Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Energy Facilities,” is forthcoming in the UCLA Journal of Environmental Law and Policy.

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GRAHAM JESMER

JD Candidate 2013

Graham Jesmer graduated from St. Michael's College, Vermont with degrees in both Economics and Journalism. Immediately following college Graham worked as a producer at WXXI-TV in Rochester, New York, where he covered local business and politics. Graham's areas of expertise are renewable energy policy and market trends, which he developed while working forRenewableEnergyWorld.com, a leading industry trade publication. During his time with the publication, he covered the solar, wind and bioenergy sectors extensively, publishing stories on a wide variety of topics including Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE), tax equity financing, federal energy legislation and the progress of the fledgling U.S. offshore wind market. He also did on-camera reporting live at industry events across a variety of sectors including Solar Power International, Windpower, Renewable Energy World Europe and Intersolar, speaking with industry and political leaders from around the world. Graham has also worked as a Government Affairs Intern with the Solar Energy Industries Association in Washington, D.C. where he did work related to FERC the FTC, SEC and federal tax policy. He is currently pursuing his JD at Vermont Law School.

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KATIE JOHNSON

JD Candidate 2013

Katie Johnson graduated summa cum laude from Otterbein University with a Bachelor’s of Science in economics. During her undergraduate career, Katie served on the Otterbein University Board of Trustees and the University’s Sustainability Committee where she worked to implement sustainable initiatives in the University’s strategic plan. Additionally, Katie studied economics at the University of Maastricht in the Netherlands. After graduation, Katie studied French in Toulouse, France and upon returning worked as a financial planning assistant with First Citizens National Financial Group. Most recently, Katie worked in the Energy and Environment Department of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio to implement the State’s alternative energy portfolio standard.

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SOPHIA KRUSZEWSKI

JD Candidate 2013

Sophia graduated magna cum laude from the University of Michigan with a BS in Environmental Science and a minor in Spanish. Upon graduation, Sophia worked as a plant pathology field researcher and then as a teacher; developing and implementing experiential science curricula for public schools in Massachusetts and New York. Most recently, Sophia was the Environmental Policy Associate at the Center for Food Safety, a Washington DC-based public interest advocacy organization. As Policy Associate, Sophia worked to advance federal food and agriculture policy that promoted the interests of consumers, farmers, and the environment. At VLS, Sophia is a staff member of the Vermont Law Review and serves on the Executive Board of both the Environmental Law Society and the Food and Agriculture Law Society. Hailing from a Michigan farming family, Sophia’s research interests include the practical and policy implications of the convergence between agriculture and climate change.

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ELENA MIHALY

JD Candidate 2013

Elena Mihaly graduated from Colorado College in 2007 with a BA in Environmental Science. While finishing her undergraduate degree, Elena also pursued a certification from the American Mountain Guides Association and became a professional rock climbing guide in 2006. After graduating and guiding, Elena moved to Southern France where she taught environmental science and global energy curriculum to international high school students. Elena then worked in South Africa for an international study abroad program, coordinating a summer-long course in ecology and cultural history. Elena is also interested in food and agriculture policy. Before enrolling at VLS, she worked on a Healthy Weight Initiative at the Vermont Attorney General’s office, and then for six months on a small-scale Vermont dairy farm. At VLS, she is pursuing her JD and Masters in Environmental Law and Policy. She is an active member of the Food and Agriculture Law Society, and is currently co-authoring a chapter with Professor Jason Czarnezki in a forthcoming book on Food and Agriculture Policy.

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CAREY ROSSER

JD Candidate 2012

Carey Rosser graduated with high honors from the Georgia Institute of Technology with a BS in Aerospace Engineering and a minor in pre-law. While at Georgia Tech, she worked for Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation in various departments involved with different phases of aircraft design and construction. While working on aircraft acoustic requirements, she collaborated with NASA for experimental design and data analysis. Prior to coming to Vermont Law School, Carey worked in Rwanda with the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International on sustainability education and other programs for communities living at the edge of the Volcanoes.

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ALLIE SILVERMAN

JD Candidate 2012

Allie Silverman graduated from Brown University where she pursued a degree in environmental studies and wrote an honors thesis on urban agriculture, community planning, and campus farming. After graduating, she lived in Panama on a Fulbright grant, where she implemented a solar rural electrification project that established a night school for adults and a community fund to run and maintain the energy systems. Allie then worked for almost three years at the Natural Resources Defense Council, where she coordinated a "BioGem" campaign in Chile to promote energy alternatives to an ill-conceived massive hydroelectric scheme. At VLS, she is pursuing her JD and MELP degree. She also works at the Energy Institute, is co-chair of the Campus Greening Committee, a Schweitzer Fellow working on community energy efficiency efforts, a China Fellow researching environmental activism and green jobs, a member of the Dartmouth Energy Collaborative and a research assistant for Gus Speth's work involved with moving beyond consumerism and reinvigorating environmental activism. In her spare time, she enjoys life outdoors training for triathlons, hiking in the green mountains with friends and family, and daydreaming in Spanish.

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KATIE THOMAS

JD, MELP, Energy Certificate Candidate 2013

Katie currently serves on the Smart Grid Team at the Energy Institute. She is working on her J.D., Masters in Environmental Law and Policy, and a Certificate in Energy Law. She graduated magna cum laude from Southern Illinois University – Carbondale in 2009 with a B.A. in Political Science and minors in Spanish and Environmental Studies. Katie attended college on a full-ride competitive debate scholarship. She was the only female on her team. During college she co-organized a campaign to pass a green fee that established a fund for renewable energy and energy efficiency projects on campus. After college she spent a year working first for the U.S. Student Public Interest Research Group in St. Louis, MO and then for a company that sells and installs renewable energy systems in eight states in the Midwest. She is currently pursuing a classroom and experiential education in energy law. She serves as the Vermont Law GLBT Alliance Co-Chair and is active in the Vermont chapter of 350.org, an organization fighting climate change. Katie grew up in Fort Collins, Colorado.

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JONATHAN VOEGELE

JD Candidate 2012

Jonathan Voegele graduated from the University of Chicago in 2004 with an AB in political science and a minor in Slavic languages & literature. In 2006 he earned his MA in politics with an international politics specialization from New York University. While in graduate school, he worked as a research assistant at the Office of the New York State Attorney General and as a research analyst at the Center on Law and Security at New York University School of Law. At the Center on Law and Security, Jonathan edited and researched for law review articles and three manuscripts on torture, al Qaeda and the war on terror which were later published. Jonathan then moved to Baltimore, MD, and worked for three years as a legal assistant in a cross-border corporate transactions and trade advisory practice at Steptoe & Johnson LLP in Washington, DC. At Steptoe, Jonathan assisted drafting licensing, supply and sourcing contracts, including those for wind turbines. During the summer of 2010, he worked at the Environmental and Natural Resources Law Clinic at Vermont Law School.

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DAVID ZOPPO

JD Candidate 2013

David Zoppo graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2010, with a major in Political Science and a minor in History. Throughout his undergraduate career, David worked in various capacities at several small businesses in the Raleigh, NC area. He has worked in fields such as sales, accounting, business development, internet marketing, and website content moderation. In the Fall of 2008, David traveled to Cape Town, South Africa to study politics and development in contemporary South Africa. While there, he also worked with the AIDS Law Project to help provide humanitarian relief and legal advocacy for refugees, asylum seekers, and immigrants who were displaced as a result of a series of xenophobic attacks that took place earlier that year. The summer after his 1L year, David worked as an intern for the in-house counsel at ABB, Inc., a global leader in power products, power automation systems, and other high and low voltage equipment that is used in generation, transmission and distribution systems throughout the world. In addition to working as a researcher at the IEE, David also serves on the production staff of the Vermont Law Review.