Last week, students in our Sustainable Energy Student Community were joined by Randi Leppla, Director of the Environmental Law Clinic at Case Western University’s School of Law.
Randi started this new position in January and is currently in the process of designing the clinic to be a useful resource for the community and for students. The clinic will be a great opportunity for law students to gain practical experience before they graduate.
Randi talked to the students about how this clinic also is a chance to create better communication about environmental law to communities that might not realize they need a specialist in that area.
“Often, health issues and food deserts can mask the environmental component of the law,” Randi noted. She hopes the clinic can help bring awareness to the need for environmental lawyers and can provide the communities who have been harmed most by pollution. Randi noted that connecting with local organizations will be crucial to create trust and better understanding.
The students had questions about the opposition to sustainable energy use. Randi commented on how well organized and funded the opposition is. But she also made sure to help students understand some of the complex dynamics in this system.
She detailed the divide between urban and rural areas. Rural areas often bear the brunt of energy creation for urban areas due to the land requirements for the projects. Another factor is the rampant gerrymandering in Ohio creating a strong voting block for fossil fuels.
Randi visited our community about a year ago when she was the vice president energy policy and lead energy counsel for the Ohio Environmental Council.
Randi noted that, while she will miss being in direct advocacy, her passion for creating more legal advocates has led her to her new position with Case Western. She also noted that, in many cases, it is rare to stay in the same area of expertise and still build a new skillset. Becoming a teacher is a new challenge that Randi looks forward to in the coming months.
Randi Leppla engaged students about their curiosities in the industry and helped shed some light on legal barriers for the sustainable energy industry. She gave students insight into changing jobs and the thought process when it comes to following passions down a new path.
We look forward to hearing more about the Environmental Law Clinic and Randi's work with students and the community.
