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NALSA: Obviously, you are very well-versed in these issues from an environmental and now legal perspective. This project really showed me that there are so many different angles to get at both environmental and tribal issues. So for them, it’s important to have higher standards protecting against water pollution. It’s an important issue for a lot of the tribes up there because a lot of them maintain fish hatcheries and eat a much higher percentage of fish than the average population in the rest of the state. Probably, one of the most interesting projects had to do with Clean Water Act standards, as far as what standard should be required for fish to be safe for human consumption. It was fun to be practicing law, but it was also great to be reading about and researching environmental and scientific topics again. I got to work on a lot of great projects. What was your favorite project there, speaking generally? NALSA: This past summer, you worked as a Summer Law Clerk for Advocates for the West a nonprofit, public-interest environmental law firm based in Boise, Idaho. Mia on a backpacking trip during a break from her Summer job I just wanted to provide a central resource to let students know about all of those multi-disciplinary opportunities. UA has so many things going for it, between the research community and things happening at the law school. You know, I think my main goal was just to, similarly to NALSA, create a supportive community for students who are interested in these issues, and to be a resource connecting law students to all of the different opportunities in environmental law at UA. As president, what have been your goals for ELS? NALSA: I want to ask a little bit about the Environmental Law Society, who have partnered with the Native American Student Law Association several times this term.
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My google calendar is just full of reminders for me to send reminders to other people about things. I have also found that staying organized helps with getting everything done as efficiently as possible, especially this year, because things are so all over the place. I am more of a morning person so it’s a lot easier for me to get up early to work than it is for me to try to do things after 10:00. You know, I don’t hate sleep, I actually really love sleep. NALSA: Do you do law work after your evening ritual? That helps me stay energized and keep from burning out. It’s also really important for me to go home at the end of the day, make dinner with Matt, take the dogs for a run and have an evening ritual that is separate from law school. Well, I am a big breakfast person so my boyfriend and I make homemade flour tortillas and eggs almost every morning. So, why do you hate sleep? Additionally, what do you eat for breakfast that sustains such energy? NALSA: As a second-year law student, you are the president of the Environmental Law Society, you are the Student Volunteer Coordinator with the Volunteer Lawyers Program, the Student Volunteer Coordinator for the Tucson Indian Center, you are a Sol Resnick Water Resources Fellow and you are hoping to take FedBar your 3L year. Mia, Matt and Chai backpacking in Colorado I think that there is a big need for environmental lawyers with a background in science.
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I had some fundamental understanding of the science and hydrology behind a lot of water management issues, but when I took Professor Glennon’s Water Law class as a graduate student, I began to realize that there was this whole world of information that I was previously ignorant to. I felt like I had this big gap in my knowledge. Through those conversations I realized that law was a powerful force in shaping policy. For my research, I spoke with some of the tribal representatives and some people in conservation groups. That study brought together all the different stakeholders, states, and interest groups that were users of the river. Originally, some of the research that I was doing involved the Colorado River Basin Study.
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What led you from science to law, and where do you hope to go? NALSA: Mia, you earned your Masters with a WSP degree and now…you are in the field of interpreting, and maybe soon, creating law. Rogers School of Law, and has previously completed her Masters of Science (M.S.), in Water, Society and Policy at the University of Arizona and her Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Environmental Studies at Franklin University Switzerland. Today we are speaking with Mia Hammersly, a 2L student from Flagstaff, Arizona.