Alum Returns to Speak to CSEJ on Environmental Litigation

Grace Smith ’10 returned to Parker last week to speak to students in the Upper School course Climate Science and Environmental Justice. This course merges the science aspects of climate change with the historical and political side; students spend two days focused on science and two days on history/politics, with a guest speaker or lab to round out the week.

Smith is an attorney at Environmental Defense Fund working on federal advocacy to cut methane and local air pollution from the oil and gas sector. Prior to joining EDF, she clerked on the Colorado Court of Appeals and at a small environmental law firm. Smith graduated from the University of Michigan Law School and, while there, interned with the Environmental Law & Policy Center, Earthjustice, the Center for International Environmental Law and the Hawai’i Appleseed Center for Law & Economic Justice.

For this visit, Smith addressed the changes in direction under the current administration related to mitigating and adapting to climate change. She gave specific examples of how climate change policy under the current administration undermined the goals of understanding, studying, monitoring, regulating and reducing greenhouse gases. Smith noted that certain industries even opposed some of the changes because they would cause regulatory confusion.

US History teacher Andy Bigelow shared, “There is nothing better than when a former student returns to be our guest speaker—it should make us all proud. Grace was exemplary as a student and even more successful changing lives as a rock-star attorney for the EDF.” US Science teacher Xiao Zhang offered, “Grace inspired our students. They needed to hear hope from someone near their age who has worked on the front line of defending the environment.”

Parker is grateful and lucky to have an alumna like Smith, who is willing to return to the school’s “model home” and spend time with students discussing and sharing her expertise while advocating for her passion.

Click here to see photos from this visit.