The Getches-Wilkinson Center (GWC) is seeking Colorado Law students interested in natural resources, energy, and environmental law to serve as the GWC Summer Research Assistant. The Spring and Summer Research Assistants will work closely with the GWC staff, including the Executive Director and GWC Senior Water Fellow who will help direct the student’s research in the areas of water law, public lands, climate change, and natural resources as applied to the American west. 

The Research Assistant will be responsible for conducting research and producing written content for the GWC. Potential projects include work on ongoing research, current development in management and conservation for federal public lands, legislative reforms to conservation laws, and assisting interested partners with the upcoming Colorado River interim guidelines renegotiations.

Position Details
This is a part-time position for either the spring or summer and may continue into the fall semester pending funding availability. Work hours are flexible. Candidates should state their desired spring or summer position as well as optimum hours in their cover letter. This position is paid at a rate of $20.00 USD per hour.

University of Colorado Law Students interested in natural resources, energy, and environmental law are eligible to apply. Work-study is preferred. Interested students should apply for work-study funding. Work-study information is available here: /studentemployment/work-study

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, early application encouraged.

Application Instructions
To apply, send the following application materials:
Resume
Cover Letter
Transcript
Writing Sample
by email to Annie Carlozzi, GWC Assistant Director, at annie.carlozzi@colorado.edu.

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GWC is accepting applications for Summer 2025 and Academic Year 25/26 Scholarships and Fellowships in Natural Resources Law. 

The deadline to apply is Friday, January 17, 2025.

Opportunities include:

The Wyss Scholars Program for U.S. Lands Conservation

The Wyss Foundation is a private, charitable foundation dedicated to land conservation in the American West. The Wyss Scholars Program seeks to identify and nurture a new generation of leaders on western land conservation issues by providing financial support to students who are committed to careers focused on western conservation.

Two Wyss Scholars will be selected each year on the basis of leadership potential, commitment to furthering land conservation in the American West, commitment to pursuing a career in nonprofit or public sector conservation, financial need, and academic strength. While experience living or working in the West is preferred, all students interested in western lands and sustainability issues are encouraged to apply.

The Harrison Fellowship in International Water Law

The Innovations in Water and Energy Law & Policy Fellowship, initiated in 2010 by partners of the law firm of Moses, Wittemyer, Harrison and Woodruff, P.C. in honor David L. Harrison (Law ‘71), is awarded each year to a Colorado Law student on the basis of academic performance, commitment to public service, and interest in the study of water and energy law and policy. To the extent practicable, each Harrison Fellow will focus on a specific project where the partner organization is advancing innovative solutions for sustainable management of water or related energy resources outside the United States.

Conscience Bay Company Western Water Policy Fellowship

The Getches-Wilkinson Center for Natural Resources, Energy and the Environment (GWC) at the University of Colorado Law School is seeking an outstanding current 2L (or rising 3L) as the next Conscience Bay Company Western Water Policy Fellow. Fellows will work on the most pressing water law reform issues of the day under the guidance of the GWC and in partnership with leaders from the non-profit, government, and private sectors.

The Charles N. Woodruff Memorial Scholarship - Admissions office will announce the application process in Spring 2025.

A recording of the October Fellowship and Scholarship Information Event event can be found . Current scholars and fellowships shared their experiences and advice for interested students. The PowerPoint presentation with detailed requirements and application information can be found here. 

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University of Colorado Law student Zane Reynolds (’26) was awarded the Charles N. Woodruff Fellowship. The Charles N. Woodruff fellowship was established in memory of Charles Woodruff, a highly successful water resources lawyer, to promote excellence in the practice of natural resources law.

Zane was born and raised in Eagle, Colorado. Beginning in his undergraduate studies at the �鶹��Ѱ�����, he developed an interest in Environmental and Natural Resources issues, which led him to return for law school.

As the Charles N. Woodruff Fellow at the GWC, Zane has been focused on drafting a white paper opposing a lawsuit filed in the Supreme Court by the state of Utah, which claims that the Bureau of Land Management cannot hold on to the 18.5 million acres of public land in the state in perpetuity. Since the lawsuit was filed, 12 other states have signed on. Given the major ramifications this suit might have on public lands, Zane looks forward to continuing his work for the GWC and protecting public lands in the West.

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On Friday, October 4^th and Saturday, October 5^th, as beautiful weather and fall colors descended upon the Front Range, legal practitioners, academics, government officials, and students gathered at the University of Colorado Law School in the Wittmeyer Courtroom for a two-day symposium.

Despite the allure of Colorado’s autumn days, there was no squirming or restless fidgeting from attendees of the 2024 Martz Symposium on Public Lands, presented by the Getches-Wilkinson Center, American Indian Law Program, and Colorado Environmental Law Journal. The reason? A darn good topic: The Future of Public Lands- People, Place, and Power.

The Symposium’s namesake, Clyde O. Martz, was a former Colorado Law professor, Assistant U.S. Attorney General, Solicitor of the Department of the Interior, partner at Davis, Graham & Stubbs, among many other accolades. To honor Professor Martz’s legacy as a “father of natural resource law,” the Symposium’s theme always centers around natural resource law issues.

The topic of public lands, as one can imagine, encompassed a wide showcasing of the relevant law—rules, statutes, cases—as well as viewpoints, from industry and academia to federal agencies and NGOs, though all shared a focus on the American West. Each panel began with the moderator giving a primer on the subject matter to be discussed. After that overview, panelists took turns weighing in on the issue and introducing new ideas from their respective positions. Naturally, some debate ensued.

The first panel, for example, incorporated all those perspectives in their discussion on the implementation and reception of BLM’s 2024 Public Lands Rule. Attendees also got a glimpse of the budding contention between renewable energy development and the interests of Tribes, with Pattern Energy’s SunZia providing the case study. And the first day concluded with a deep dive into ongoing debates about the future of the Antiquities and national monument designations. With all the panels, spirited Q&A followed, demonstrating the high level of engagement of conference attendees.

The purpose of events like the Martz Symposium is to expose people to different points of view, while also providing the medium to soundboard issues, ideas, and solutions off one another. Lunch hour and networking breaks paint that picture well, as colleagues and old classmates continued discussions that started on the panels in Wittmeyer Courtroom.

Despite feelings of uncertainty surrounding the potential impact of a new administration on the future of public land management, permitting reform, and tribal co-stewardship, conference attendees did not let that uncertainty rue the day. Throughout every presentation, there was an overarching theme of optimism for the future of stewardship and care for America’s public lands.

Stay tuned for the Journal’s symposium issue (estimated publication: May 2025), where some of our conference panelists will publish articles on their talks.

Recordings and Images Available: 

The recordings of the 2024 Martz Symposium on Public Lands can be found .

Barb Colombo of captured images of the Martz Symposium. These images are available for .

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Originally published by the Colorado Law School Amicus Fall 2024 on Oct. 7, 2024

A legal career in land conservation may often feel unattainable for recent law school graduates. The pressure to pay off student loan debt, coupled with the often-lower paying salaries in public interest jobs, could prompt them to look elsewhere. However, thanks to the Wyss Scholars Program, funded by the Wyss Foundation, one Colorado Law student each year receives generous financial assistance to cover the cost of one-third of law school tuition and expenses, as well as funds for internship opportunities and professional development support.

The program's impact will soon grow; starting in fall 2025, the Wyss Foundation will fund two Wyss Scholars at Colorado Law each year. “The Wyss Scholars Program is a strategic and impactful partnership between Colorado Law and the Wyss Foundation,” said Chris Winter, executive director of the Getches-Wilkinson Center, who oversees the Wyss Scholars Program. “Through the program, scholars get exactly the right kind of support that can make a difference in the trajectory of their careers. We’re very grateful for the support of the Wyss Foundation, and we are thrilled that the students at Colorado Law have this opportunity.”

Wyss Scholarships are awarded to promising leaders in United States land conservation. Scholars learn the latest in conservation law and policy and apply that knowledge in careers at land management agencies and nonprofit conservation groups often with a focus on the protection of public lands. Lawyers in this field provide legal and political counsel on a broad range of land and water use issues—work that is critical to ensuring the protection of public lands now and into the future.

Colorado Law is one of only six public institutions in the U.S to host the Wyss Foundation Wyss Scholars Program. The program has had a profound impact on scholarship recipients' lives since the first Wyss Scholar was selected in 2018. For these students, this funding has been instrumental in the path they have taken both during their final year of law school and in the two years following.[“Being selected as a Wyss Scholar was huge for a number of reasons,” explained Eric Dude ’19. “Public interest and environmental law work is not very lucrative for law students, so the scholarship allowed me to search for more interesting internship opportunities while I was still in law school.”

The summer after being selected as a Wyss Scholar, Dude interned for the Access Fund, a national climbing advocacy organization, where his work centered around protection of national monuments and sustainable recreational access. Dude shared that without the financial support of the Wyss Scholars Program, he would not have been able to take advantage of such an opportunity.

The case was similar for Colorado Law's 2020-21 Wyss Scholar Alex Hamilton ’21, who was able to work an unpaid externship during his 3L year for a Wyoming nonprofit focused on state and federal public lands policy.

“The stipend allowed me to work at Wyoming Outdoor Council and do more coursework instead of taking a paid job,” Hamilton explained. “I was able to do something a little more in my wheelhouse, despite not being paid for it.”

After graduation, Dude and Hamilton accepted jobs in their desired fields. While the funding played a huge role in the direction of their early careers, Dude emphasized the overall value of being affiliated with the Wyss Scholars Program.

“Lots of people have resumes in law school that say they are interested in environmental law,” Dude shared. “But, to say ‘I'm part of the Wyss program’ is to say public lands is my focus, I know and understand public lands law, and I want to do something specifically in that area.”

Dude believes that he was able to get his dream job as an attorney-advisor at the U.S. Department of the Interior Solicitor’s Office because of his Wyss Scholarship.

“As far as setting up your career, the Wyss program is huge in ways I don't think you appreciate when you first get named a Wyss Scholar,” Dude said. “There is a whole network of scholars, and to say that you have dedicated your life to public lands work helps people know you are serious about it and not just seeking a job.”

Dude has remained at the Solicitor's Office since he was first hired after graduation. He currently works for the Solicitor's Office Rocky Mountain Region in Denver, where he counsels the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Park Service on various public lands issues.

Hamilton also experienced the significant positive impact of the scholarship program upon graduation. He worked for the U.S. Forest Service through the Presidential Management Fellowship—the federal government's premier leadership development program for advanced degree holders—as a forest planner for the Cibola National Forest in New Mexico.

“It was nice to have the Wyss Scholarship because I was hired at a much lower salary than if I had taken an attorney position,” Hamilton explained. “It filled that gap for me, which was critical.”

Hamilton eventually transitioned from his role at the U.S. Forest Service to working for the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Office of General Counsel as an attorney-advisor. He shared that the scholarship provided a strong impetus to stay in public lands work, in part because the payment disburses over the first two years of the recipient’s practice.

“The longer you are in this field, the more expertise you get and the easier it is to stay,” Hamilton said. “I can’t really imagine leaving a career in federal lands management at this point. It is so interesting, so rewarding, and having the knowledge that I was going to have that support the first couple of years from the Wyss Scholarship program was great.”

The success of past Wyss Scholars not only demonstrates the prestige and impact of the program itself, but also the depth and breadth of Colorado Law’s natural resources and environmental law program.

For more than half a century, environmental and natural resources law have been a key part of the Colorado Law curriculum. The program has ranked consistently among the very best in the nation, most recently being named a top 10 program in environmental law by U.S. News and World Report.

Both Dude and Hamilton shared that they were drawn to Colorado Law because of the strength of its environmental law program. The world-class faculty, engaging curriculum, and experiential learning opportunities provide students with the support and expertise they need to have successful careers at law firms, corporations, nonprofit organizations, and governmental agencies.

“I was not someone who always thought law school was the path,” Dude shared. “When I made that decision, I specifically wanted to make a career in public lands and researched schools that were strong in that area—and Colorado Law was at the top of the list.”

Last spring, Mariah Bowman ’25 was named Colorado Law’s 2024-25 Wyss Scholar. She is eager to combine her love for the land with her overwhelming certainty that climate action is the best thing we can do for it.

“I was thrilled to be selected for the Wyss Scholars Program this year,” Bowman shared. “The program will help me pursue my interests at the intersection of public lands and climate policy. I am really looking forward to meeting other Wyss Scholars, past and present, and continuing to learn about public lands law and policy."

Last summer, she interned with the U.S. Department of Justice Environment and Natural Resources Division. She hopes to dedicate her career to conservation work and believes the Wyss Scholarship will be instrumental in this pursuit.

The Wyss Scholars Program continues to bolster Colorado Law as a top-ranked institution for environmental law. We are thrilled to see the success of our past Wyss Scholars and look forward to
seeing what future scholarship recipients will accomplish as they embark on their careers.

Meet the Colorado Law Wyss Scholars

Eric Dude '19, Office of the Solicitor, U.S. Department of the Interior

Leah Fugere '20, WilmerHale

Alex Hamilton '21, Office of the General Counsel, U.S. Department of Agriculture

Johnsie Wilkinson '22, Office of the Solicitor, U.S. Department of Interior

Jacob Jose '23, Wildlife and Marine Resources Section, U.S. Department of Justice

Adam Fisher '24, Colorado Supreme Court, Chambers of Chief Justice Brian D. Boatright

Mariah Bowman '25, (current 3L student)

Originally published by the Colorado Law School Amicus Fall 2024 on Oct. 7, 2024

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ADVANCED NATURAL RESOURCES SEMINAR: THE COLORADO PLATEAU

Professors Chris Winter & Mark Squillace
Spring Semester, 2025

Applications are now open for this seminar.

Download application instructions here.

Deadline To Apply: Mon, Nov 4th by 5pm
 

This three-credit seminar is designed as the capstone course of our natural resources curriculum.  The class will meet on Tuesdays 2:30-4:10 with a possibility to extend to 4:30pm.  We can offer three credits because of the substantial time we will be spending in the field as described below.  The course is available for twelve law students, and three graduate students from other disciplines, with strong interests and backgrounds in natural resources issues in the American West.  It provides students with the opportunity to tie together materials that they have studied in various courses relating to natural resources law and policy by moving beyond their textbooks and learning how the issues play out in the real world.  To accomplish this goal, students who enroll in the seminar must commit to a week-long field trip over spring break on the Colorado Plateau.

         The course focuses on a specific geographical area where numerous resource issues converge.  This year our focus will be on the Colorado Plateau.  We will begin by embarking on an interdisciplinary study of the geography, the history, ecological issues, cultural issues, resource development and use issues, and the economy of the Region.  We will then consider current legal and policy issues on the Plateau as they relate to federal public lands, wildlife resources and habitats, Tribal co-stewardship, water quantity and quality, Native American law and Native American rights, land use planning, air pollution, and the balance between state and federal power.

Author Ray Wheeler describes the Colorado Plateau as follows:

                 The Colorado Plateau is a physiographic "province," a region geologically and topographically distinct from other parts of the West. Originally named the "Colorado Plateaus" by explorer John Wesley Powell, the "Plateau" is in fact a huge basin ringed by highlands and filled with plateaus. Sprawling across southeastern Utah, northern Arizona, northwestern New Mexico, and western Colorado, the Colorado Plateau province covers a land area of 130,000 square miles. Of America's 50 states, only Alaska, Texas, California, and Montana are larger.

Asked to explain what makes the Colorado Plateau unique, geographers grow cryptic, enigmatic, even mystical. Perhaps that is inevitable, for nothing is more typical of the "Plateau" than enigma itself. Geologically, it is perhaps best defined by what did not happen to it. While the Rocky Mountains to the east and the basin and range country to the west were being thrust, stretched, and fractured into existence, the Colorado Plateau earned a name for itself by the simple device of remaining structurally intact.

"The Colorado Plateau is extremely ancient," says author F.A. Barnes, an expert on the region's geology. "As a distinct mass of continental crust, it is at least 500 million years old -- probably a lot older." Such longevity is especially impressive when one considers the globetrotting adventures of the North American continent from the perspective of continental drift theory. Over a period of 300 to 400 million years, while the land mass that would become the North American continent inched northward from the South Pole, gradually disengaging itself from Africa, Asia, and South America, the Colorado Plateau region drifted along comfortably on its western edge. Now shoreline, now inundated by rising seas, the entire region accumulated huge quantities of sediment, gradually sinking under its own weight until heat and pressure hardened the deposits into a mantle of sedimentary rock several miles thick. Even when the entire western United States began to rise some 10 million years ago, eventually climbing to elevations as much as three miles above sea level, the Colorado Plateau region remained stable – perhaps "floating" on a cushion of molten rock.

Though volcanic eruptions ring its perimeter, few have penetrated the interior of the Colorado Plateau. Blocked by massive layers of sedimentary rock, rising magma could do no more than bulge its thick roof into domes -- the "laccolithic" Henry, La Sal, and Abajo mountain ranges -- before cooling and hardening in place. The tremendous tectonic forces which formed the Sierra Nevada and Rocky Mountains had far less effect on the Colorado Plateau. Shielded or cushioned by something deep in the earth, the Plateau mirrored those forces but dimly -- as broad, dome-shaped uplifts, shallow basins, and long folds or "reefs."

Wilderness at the Edge: A Citizen Proposal to Protect Utah's Canyons and Deserts, Utah Wilderness Coalition, at97-104 (1990).

         The Colorado Plateau is an area of extremes.  It can be bitterly cold in the winter and unbearably hot in the summer.  It is among the most beautiful places on earth but it is also quite fragile.  And it is the scene of many significant environmental conflicts and controversies, including, for example, proposals to build two massive dams in the Grand Canyon (which failed), the decision to build a massive coal-fired power plant in Page, Arizona (which operated for decades and recently closed), and the decision to designate several major national monuments in the region, including most notably, the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument and the Bears Ears National Monument (which are both embroiled in ongoing litigation).  Resources issues involve grazing, mining, logging, oil and gas development, renewable energy development, primitive and motorized recreation, water rights (including Indian water rights), wildlife, including endangered species, and important cultural resources and Tribal co-stewardship.

              The seminar is divided into three parts. The first part includes the nine weeks of the semester before Spring break. To get us ready and in the mood for the seminar, we will read Charles Wilkinson’s, terrific book, Fire on the Plateau, and Ed Abbey’s, The Monkey Wrench Gang, over the holiday break.  The first class will discuss logistics for the course as well as these two books.

During the following eight weeks of the class four groups of students will each prepare and present materials under our supervision that cover various aspects of the Colorado Plateau.  Each group will have two classes to share what they have learned, to answer questions, and to facilitate discussion.  We will have one introductory class before student presentations begin, but this schedule means that the first group will have to prepare their materials over the holiday break so that they are ready to go on week two of the seminar.  (The other groups should also begin to collect the materials that they will use over the break.)  We will oversee this effort with meetings and discussions that suggest the most useful materials to share.

         Set forth below are the four subject areas that the groups will cover during the first part of the course:

• Group 1:The history of the Colorado Plateau, including the cultural and natural history of the region, historic resource development and uses.
• Group 2:The legal framework that underlies the management of the Colorado Plateau.This should include a review of the key statutes such as the Federal Land Policy and Management act (FLPMA), the General Mining Law, the National Forest Management Act (NFMA), the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Antiquities Act, the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), the Endangered Species Act (ESA), and perhaps others.This should be a review for most students and should be approached accordingly, but it is important for setting the stage for the last two groups.
• Group 3: Contemporary resource and development issues, including conflicts over mineral development, oil and gas development, water development and water resources, logging, agricultural development including grazing, and renewable energy development.
• Group 4: Protected lands, endangered species, cultural resources and Tribal co-stewardship, climate change, and ecological issues.This should include the present and expected future impacts of climate change on the region and its implications for law and policy. It should also address issues relating to the fragmentation of the ecosystem from development and recreation activities.

         The second part of the course involves a week-long field trip. We will meet with land managers, lawyers, tribal representatives, environmentalists, political leaders, business people, and other informed people in the region, and conduct on-site visits to experience the area’s unique resources. We are particularly interested in understanding conflicts and possible solutions to those conflicts as informed by our interdisciplinary studies. 

         In 2025, the field trip will take place during our spring break, from Friday, March 21st through Saturday, March 29th.  The field trip is a critical part of this course, and students must commit to participate fully in the field trip as a condition for enrolling in the course.  We have a modest budget for running this course and we will try to organize the course so that we can stay in comfortable accommodations with minimal additional costs for the participants.

         There may be opportunities to hike or engage in other recreational activities during the field trip, and we will ensure that the trip is accessible and welcoming for all students. Please reach out to Professors Winter and Squillace if you have any questions about the trip.

         This is a seminar, so each student will be expected to prepare a substantial research paper that relates to some aspect of the issues and resources affecting the Colorado Plateau.  During the third part of the course, which includes the four weeks after spring break, students will workshop their draft papers.

         We look forward to working with you to make this course informative, inspiring, fun, and a great success!

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The Getches-Wilkinson Center, American Indian Law Program and Colorado Environmental Law Journal are pleased to present the 2024 Martz Symposium on Public Lands.

The Future of Public Lands – People, Place, and Power

Public lands across the United States provide us with clean water, energy and food production, world-class recreational opportunities, wildlife habitat, and many other important values. Indigenous peoples have deep ties to the land informed by their traditional ecological knowledge. And public lands drive economic opportunities and job creation for rural communities. For all these reasons, the American public broadly supports the protection and sustainable use of public lands, yet they are facing unprecedented threats from resource degradation, climate change, the demands of multiple uses, and challenges in agency funding levels.

The 2024 Martz Symposium will take a deep dive into these rapid changes that are unfolding in real time and how they impact our relationship to the land. The Conference will consider the latest developments and proposed reforms to the laws and policies that govern our management of public lands, including a look at those laws that are standing in the way of progress and others that have helped to pave the way for innovation. And the Conference will convene a diverse and inclusive set of stakeholders, policymakers, academics, and advocates to share ideas on how best we can steward and care for America’s public lands for current and future generations.

Fri, October 4 - Saturday, October 5, 2024
8am-4:30pm

Wolf Law Building, Wittemyer Courtroom
Breakfast, Snack and Lunch provided daily
Attendee reception provided on Fri, Oct 4

12 General Colorado CLE credits are available for this event.

Early Bird Rates until Sun, September 15th.
Registration Closes end of business day Wed, Oct 2nd.

Symposium Recordings and Photographs
 

The recordings of the 2024 Martz Symposium on Public Lands can be found .

Barb Colombo of captured images of the Martz Symposium. These images are available for .

Friday, October 4, 2024

8:00 am – 8:45 am      Breakfast and Networking
8:45 am – 9:00 am      Welcome and Opening Remarks
9:00 am – 10:15 am    BLM’s 2024 Public Lands Rule – Conservation and the Multiple Use Framework
10:15 am – 10:45 am  Break
10:45 am – 12:00 pm  The Future of Oil and Gas on America’s Public Lands
12:00 pm – 1:00 pm    Lunch
1:00 pm – 2:15 pm      Renewable Energy Development and the Protection of Cultural and Natural Resources
2:15 pm – 2:45 pm      Break
2:45 pm – 4:15 pm      Debating the Future of the Antiquities Act
4:15 pm – 6:00 pm      Reception

Saturday, October 5, 2024

8:15 am – 8:45 am      Breakfast and Networking
8:45 am - 9:00 am    Welcome back and morning announcements
9:00 am – 10:15 am    Evolutions in Tribal Co-Stewardship
10:15 am – 10:45 am  Break
10:45 am – 12:00 pm  Mining Reform and the Development of Critical Minerals
12:00 pm – 1:00 pm    Lunch
1:00 pm – 2:15 pm      Forests, Wildfire, and the Protection of Old-Growth in the Era of Climate Change
2:15 pm – 2:45 pm      Break
2:45 pm – 4:00 pm      Permitting Reform on Public Lands – The Delicate Balance Between Energy, Equity, and the Environment
4:00 pm                         Adjourn

Conference Speakers: (subject to change)

S. James Anaya, University Distinguished Professor and Nicholas Doman Professor of International Law, University of Colorado Law School
Tommy Beaudreau, Partner, WilmerHale
Bret Birdsong, Professor of Law, University of Nevada School of Law
Matthew Campbell, Deputy Director, Native American Rights Fund
Nada Culver, Principal Deputy Director, Bureau of Land Management
Dr. Steven Feldgus, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management, U.S. Department of the Interior
Alison Flint, Senior Legal Director, The Wilderness Society
Michael Freeman, Senior Attorney, Earthjustice
Frank Garrison, Attorney, Pacific Legal Foundation
Pat Gonzalez-Rogers, Executive Fellow and Lecturer, Yale School of the Environment
Peter Gower, Climate and Renewable Energy Program Director for the Western U.S. and Canada Divisions, The Nature Conservancy
Mary Greene, Senior Counsel, American Clean Power
Bill Imbergamo, Executive Director, Federal Forest Resource Coalition
Cort Jensen, Chief Attorney, Montana Department of Agriculture
Sarah Matsumoto, Clinical Associate Professor and Director, Environmental Law Clinic, University of Colorado Law School
Tom McDonald, Vice-Chair of Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes
Heidi McIntosh, Managing Attorney, Rocky Mountain Regional Office, Earthjustice
Scott Miller, Senior Regional Director, The Wilderness Society
Monte Mills, Charles I. Stone Professor of Law, University of Washington School of Law
Jamie Pleune, Research Associate Professor, University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law
Justin Pidot, Professor of Law, University of Arizona School of Law
John Ruple, Research Professor of Law, University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law
Taylor Schad, Policy Advisory on Forest Service and Natural Resources, U.S. Department of Agriculture
Howard M. Shanker, Attorney General, Tohono O’odham Nation
Kathleen Sgamma, President, Western Energy Alliance
Mark Squillace, Raphael J. Moses Professor of Law, University of Colorado Law School
Pilar Thomas, Partner, Quarles & Brady
Chase Velasquez, Attorney, Rothstein Donatelli LLP
Chris Winter, Executive Director, Getches-Wilkinson Center, University of Colorado Law School
Sandra B. Zellmer, Professor, Univeristy of Montana School of Law

Hotel Information

GWC has a hotel room block at the Residence Inn Canyon Blvd in Boulder from Wed, October 3 - Sat, October 6. . The room block is available on a first come, first serve basis and is valid until September 13th or until all rooms are filled.

Conference Partnerships

We’re now accepting conference partners at all levels. For more info please email annie.carlozzi@colorado.edu.
Learn more about our partnerships here.

Thank you to our Conference Partners!

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The Getches-Wilkinson Center and American Indian Law Program are pleased to present the 2024 Ruth Wright Distinguished Lecture.

Public Lands, Water, and Tribal Sovereignty in an Era of Energy Transition

Policies regarding federal public lands and waters must adjust to the reality of climate change and the inevitable trend toward a clean energy economy.  Over the last four years, the federal government has moved sharply to promote solar and wind energy on federal lands, while limiting fossil fuel development. And in a time of rising temperatures and prolonged drought, management of over-appropriated river basins in arid areas requires unprecedented creativity and cooperation. In other regions, like the Columbia River Basin, priorities include restoration of fish habitat coupled with continuing support to regional economies. More than ever before, Indian tribes, treaty rights, and co-stewardship initiatives shape the way in which all of these diverse natural resources are viewed and managed, while groups favored by past policies strive to protect their interests.  This lecture will canvas these and related topics as experienced in the Department of the Interior over the past four years and suggest future paths toward sound stewardship.

Bob Anderson

Solicitor of the Department of the Interior

Bob Anderson is a law professor with extensive experience in American Indian law, public land, and water law. He is an enrolled member of the Bois Forte Band of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe. He taught at the University of Washington School of Law and directed its Native American Law Center for the past twenty years. For over a decade he has been an annual visiting professor at Harvard Law School. He served as the Associate Solicitor for Indian Affairs and Counselor to the Secretary under Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt. He began his career as a staff attorney for the Native American Rights Fund.

Thurs, September 26th

12-12:50pm Student Lunch with Bob Anderson Room 207 - no registration required

6:00-7:30pm - Lecture: Wolf Law Building, Wittemyer Courtroom
7:30-8:30pm - Reception for all registered attendees

This event is free and open to the public, but registration is required to attend and/or receive the livestream link.
In person and Virtual (Zoom) attendance available.
There will be a reception following the lecture. Details will be sent to registered participants prior to the event.

2 General Colorado CLE credits are available for this event.

Lecture Photographs

Barb Colombo of captured images of the Ruth Wright Distinguished Lecture. These images are available for .

Lecture Recordings

The lecture recording can be .

The Ruth Wright Distinguished Lecture in Natural Resources

In 2018, the GWC received a generous gift from the Wright Family Foundation to establish the Ruth Wright Distinguished Lecture in Natural Resources in honor of her inspiring legacy as a leader in western natural resources, land conservation, and environmental policy and advocacy. With this support, we look forward to bringing this free event to our community for years to come.

As a legislator, environmentalist, and historian, Ruth Wright dedicated her career to environmental issues and activism. While a student at Colorado Law, she led efforts to preserve Boulder’s open space and limit the height of buildings in Boulder to 55 feet to protect enjoyment of the unique landscape for the ages. In 1980, she was elected to the Colorado House of Representatives, where she represented Boulder until 1994. She was also the second woman ever to become the House minority leader, a role she held from 1986 until 1992. While serving in the House of Representatives, Wright continued to be a strategic champion for the environment, and has been recognized by such groups as the Colorado Wildlife Foundation, the ACLU, the Sierra Club, and Colorado Open Lands.

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In a victory for old-growth forests and public transparency, on May 24, 2024, a federal district court found that BLM violated the law when it approved its “Integrated Vegetation Management for Resilient Lands” program in southwest Oregon. Colorado Law’s Getches-Green Natural Resources, Energy, and Environmental Law Clinic represents Applegate Siskiyou Alliance (ASA) in its challenge to BLM’s large-scale program. The program, known as “IVM,” authorizes a range of activities marketed as wildfire protection and mitigation, including aggressive commercial logging in old-growth forest designated as habitat for the threatened Northern Spotted Owl.

In its Findings and Recommendation, the court agreed with ASA and other plaintiffs that BLM should have prepared a more comprehensive, thorough analysis of its chosen program. Specifically, the court found that more analysis and explanation was needed because the effects of the program were highly uncertain and the scientific support for its program was controversial. The court agreed with plaintiffs that BLM selected its chosen alternative “without fully exploring the conflicting research on the issue” and discounted the “possibility that treatments would exacerbate forest fires.” Findings and Recommendation at 29. The court also agreed with ASA that BLM’s reliance on multi-level tiering was designed to “allow it to maneuver around its obligation” to conduct site-specific analysis of the impacts of its decision, and “breeds problems for public participation [and] transparency[.]” Findings and Recommendation at 31-32.

The court’s decision represents a victory for both ASA and NREL clinic students. Two teams of Colorado Law students served as counsel for ASA and performed a range of tasks during the academic year, including reviewing a massive administrative record, drafting and filing a motion for summary judgment, responding to motions filed by BLM and industry intervenors, and arguing the case in federal court. The students who worked on the case are: Gabe Mein, 3L, Grace Bushong, 3L, and Mackenzie Warden, 3L (Fall 2023 team), and Adam Wolnski, 3L, Alexandria Nielsen, (’24), and Nestor Rodriguez, (LLM ’24), (Spring 2024 team). All of these students deserve recognition for their tremendous work on this case!

Before the oral argument in April, NREL clinic students Adam Wolnski and Alexandria Nielsen and Professor Sarah Matsumoto got to spend time in the field with the Executive Director of ASA, Luke Ruediger. Opportunities for place-based learning are valuable experiences for NRE clinic students, and by touring the site, the students were able to see firsthand the concepts and places they’ve been researching and writing about. Touring the site also set the team up well for oral argument, which lasted for nearly two hours.

After receiving the Findings and Recommendation, the parties had the opportunity to raise objections through briefs submitted to the court. The parties now await a decision from Judge Ann Aiken as to whether she will adopt or reject the magistrate’s findings. Meanwhile, the Clinic is gearing up for the coming school year and preparing to welcome a new crop of student attorneys. The students will work on behalf of ASA and other clients seeking to safeguard natural resources, protect communities from pollution, and fight the harmful effects of climate change.

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On April 18, 2024, the Bureau of Land Management issued a final rule that will guide future management of 245 million acres of public land, nearly 1/0^th of the country’s land base. In the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, Congress charged BLM with managing public lands for multiple uses and a sustained yield of natural resources for current and future generations. The “” addresses ecological degradation of public lands, which threatens the ability of BLM to achieve the goals of FLPMA, and it focuses on resilience, that is the ability of ecosystems to recover from the threats of disturbances and environmental change.  

GWC is pleased to release a white paper – A Legal Analysis of the Public Lands Rule – in collaboration with the at the S.J. Quinney School of Law. The white paper lays out the overall framework of the Rule and discusses the primary policy tools that are included.

In particular, BLM clarifies in the Rule that “conservation,” which includes both restoration of degraded ecosystems and protection of intact areas, is considered to be a “use” on par with other multiple uses. The Rule also creates “restoration” and “mitigation” leases that can be used to address harms or degradation resulting from other of the uses. 

The white paper also provides detail on the legal foundation of the Rule. The Public Lands Rule is built upon the multiple use and sustained yield mandate in FLPMA, and Congress provided BLM with a conservation mandate to ensure that public lands can provide a sustained yield of services to the public over multiple generations. The Rule is consistent with FLPMA and the discretion that federal courts have provided to BLM to determine how best to balance and manage multiple uses on public lands.

You can read the final rule . You can read the white paper here.

If you have any questions about the Rule or the white paper, please reach out to Chris Winter, Executive Director, chris.winter@colorado.edu.  

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