About Us
Plains Justice is a public-interest energy and environmental law center serving Northern Plains communities, including eastern Montana and Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska and Iowa. Our docket includes land use, major facility siting, Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Resource Conservation and Recovery Act and energy policy work. Make a donation today!
Staff and Consultants
Paul Blackburn, J.D. (Vermillion, SD): Staff Attorney (Dakotas, Nebraska)
Paul is an Iowa native who earned a law degree from Boston College Law School and a Bachelor’s degree in Biology from Macalester College. In Washington, DC, he worked for Van Ness Feldman, a law firm that specialized in energy and Native American matters, and also for the National Environmental Trust and Oceana. In California, he served as the Director of Government and Public Relations for a fuel-cell development company, worked in conservation advocacy for a local Sierra Club Chapter, helped found an alternative transportation advocacy organization, and participated in a number of conservation advocacy campaigns.
Glenn Cannon (Sunset Beach, NC): Clean Energy Ambassador
Glenn Cannon runs an innovative clean energy outreach to rural electric cooperatives and municipal utilities. Drawing on 17 years’ experience as General Manager of Waverly Light and Power, Glenn advises small utilities in the upper Midwest on how to improve efficiency, lower bills, and cut fossil fuel use through strategies implemented successfully in Waverly. Glenn is a past Chair of the American Public Power Association and a winner of the U.S. Department of Energy’s inaugural Wind Power Pioneer Award, among many other honors and awards from his distinguished career in public power. He also holds a number of biofuel patents.
Jill K. Cliburn (Santa Fe, NM): Consultant to the Clean Energy Ambassadors Project
Throughout her long career, Jill K. Cliburn has focused on helping utilities adopt sustainable energy technologies and practices. She is a leader in developing strategies that integrate wind, solar, other renewables, and demand-side programs to increase resource value. Her firm has clients including municipal utilities, electric cooperatives, and industry associations, as well as U.S. Dept. of Energy, state, and local agencies. She has also worked with nonprofit organizations, including the New Mexico Conference of Churches and Southwest Energy Efficiency Project. Her work for the Clean Energy Ambassadors Project is focused on creating more effective dialogue between community stakeholders and their utilities.
Kelsey Collier-Wise, J.D. (Vermillion, SD): Communications Assistant
Kelsey is a fourth-generation South Dakotan who recently completed her law degree at the University of South Dakota. After receiving her undergraduate degree in English from the University of Minnesota, she worked as a staffer for Rep. Stephanie Herseth-Sandlin and as an information specialist for South Dakota Public Broadcasting. Kelsey serves on the boards of several local and statewide organizations.
Kelly Fuller, M.A. (Vermillion, SD): Communications Director
Kelly directs media communications and messaging for all Plains Justice’s programs. She developed her communications expertise as a campaign coordinator and advancement director for conservation and environmental advocacy organizations including, most recently, Voyageurs National Park Association in Minneapolis. Kelly has farm family roots in the De Smet, South Dakota area.
Carrie La Seur, Ph.D., J.D. (Billings, MT): Founder and President
A seventh-generation descendant of Montana homesteaders, Carrie is an energy and environmental lawyer who has served as a gubernatorial appointee to the Iowa Environmental Protection Commission, a panel of nine citizens who provide policy oversight over Iowa’s environmental protection efforts, and the Iowa Power Fund Board, charged with shaping the state’s energy plan and investing $100 million in public funds in clean energy. Carrie earned a doctorate in modern languages as a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University, and a J.D. from Yale Law School. Carrie has practiced in the upper Midwest since 2003 and has published on a variety of energy and environmental topics, including an article on the U.S. Farm Bill in the winter 2010 issue of the Harvard Law & Policy Review. She is a licensed attorney in Iowa and Montana, and founded Plains Justice in 2006.
Jana Linderman, J.D. (Cedar Rapids, IA): Staff Attorney
Jana is a North Dakota native. She graduated from Iowa State University with a degree in French and International Studies and received her J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center. Jana has a background in rural development policy work at the federal level. After providing pro bono assistance for most of 2007, Jana joined Plains Justice in August 2007 to work on rural advocacy and Dakotas projects in particular, serving the region where she grew up on a third generation family farm. Jana is chair of the Women, Food and Agriculture Network and serves on the board of the Iowa Farmer’s Union.
Sue Patton (Cedar Rapids, IA): Office Administrator
Sue is recently retired from a career as a legal assistant for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Iowa. She brings a wealth of experience to the management of our young public interest environmental law center. Sue also volunteers for the Make a Wish Foundation and Reach to Recovery Breast Cancer Program.
Nicole Shalla, J.D., M.E.L.P. (Iowa City, IA): Staff Attorney
Nicole is an environmental science graduate of Iowa State University and the University of South Dakota Law School. She holds a masters degree in environmental law from Vermont Law School. Nicole pursues Clean Air Act enforcement across Plains Justice’s mission area on behalf of grassroots clients.
Doug Wagner (Cedar Rapids, IA): Resource Director
Doug Wagner is a native Iowan and comes to Plains Justice with a diverse and extensive background in communications, marketing, development and business operations. Doug has worked with and consulted Fortune-500 companies, has served as the President of a local affordable housing agency, and in several executive positions in both municipal and federal government offices, including as Press Secretary for former Iowa Congressman Jim Leach. He is active in the community as well, serving as an elder in his church, and as a volunteer board or committee member for several non-profits in the greater Cedar Rapids area.
Donna Wong-Gibbons, Ph.D. (North Liberty, IA): Public Health Specialist
Donna is a research scientist trained in physiology (Wake Forest University) and epidemiology (University of Iowa). Her interests include the effects of the environment on human health as well as moral and ethical implications of human impacts on the environment. Her role at Plains Justice includes providing perspective and developing educational information on the health care costs associated with coal power. In addition to her work at Plains Justice, Donna serves as the Executive Director of the Iowa Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Board of Directors
Judith Whetstine, J.D. (Cedar Rapids, IA), Chair:
A graduate of the University of Iowa College of Law, Judi served for over 29 years as a civil and criminal trial attorney for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Northern District of Iowa and in the Northern District of California. Her experience includes supervising the entire office for the Northern District of Iowa. Judi is currently on the Board of Directors of the International Organization of News Ombudsmen and is a Community Advocate for the local Cedar Rapids newspaper and television station, handling complaints about news reports. In addition, Judi is a member of the City of Cedar Rapids Board of Ethics.
Linda K. Shatzer (Waterloo, IA), Vice Chair:
Linda is a retired teacher and a volunteer with Community Energy Solutions, a grassroots organization opposing the building of new coal-fired electrical generating facilities and promoting energy efficiency and renewable energy in Iowa. Linda grew up on a farm and married a farmer. Being very much connected to the land, Linda works on creative ways to grow their own food without pesticides and herbicides.
Robert Sessions, Ph.D. (Iowa City, IA), Secretary:
Bob teaches philosophy and humanities at Kirkwood Community College in Iowa City. He has written extensively about environmental philosophy and is a member of a number of environmental organizations. Bob especially enjoys gardening and doing park maintenance and exotic weed control in Iowa City’s Hickory Hill Park.
Steve Merrick (Cedar Rapids, IA), Treasurer:
Steve is currently the Director of Business Development with Metro Studios, a full-service marketing agency in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He is a former member of the South Dakota Legislative Research Council, where he developed legislative programs and coordinated the state’s activities across cabinets.
Eldena Bear Don’t Walk, Esq. (St. Ignatius, MT):
Eldena is Chief Appellate Justice for the Crow Nation, a member of the Crow and Confederated Salish and Kootenai tribes, and a social entrepreneur. She was a 2003-04 Tribal Ambassador in the Americans for Indian Opportunity program.
Frank Hurtte (Davenport, IA):
Frank is a founding partner of River Heights Consulting, a business coach, author, consultant and speaker. He works with distribution organizations throughout North America. He is actively involved in The River Music Experience in Davenport.
Christina Kracher (Billings, MT):
Christina is a member of the Little Shell Band of Chippewa and the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa. She has a background in Environmental Science and graduated from the University of New Mexico School of Law. In New Mexico, she worked for Los Alamos National Laboratory with the Environmental Protection Division in waste management, environmental compliance, ecology and air quality issues. She is currently practicing law in Billings, Montana specializing in Indian law.
Denise O’Brien (Atlantic, IA):
An organic farmer for 30 years and founder of the Women, Food and Agriculture Network, Denise was the Democratic candidate for Iowa Secretary of Agriculture in 2006.
James Sines, J.D. (Cedar Rapids, IA):
James is a partner at the Ackley, Kopecky & Kingery law firm in Cedar Rapids. His law and undergraduate degrees are from the University of Iowa. He is a Resource Group Member for the Floodplain Management and Hazard Mitigation Task Force of the Rebuild Iowa Office.
Pat Spears (Fort Pierre, SD):
Pat is a leader of the clean energy organization Intertribal Council on Utility Policy, a private energy consultant, and a member of the Lower Brule Sioux tribe.
Mark Trechock (Dickinson, ND):
The Executive Director of Dakota Resource Council, North Dakota’s leading environmental advocacy organization, Mark has had a long career in advocacy on the Northern Plains and nonprofit management.
Advisory Board
Ray C. Anderson:
Founder and Chairman of carpet manufacturer Interface, Inc., Ray Anderson is leading his company on a groundbreaking mission to eliminate any negative environmental impacts Interface may have, by the year 2020, through the redesign of processes and products, the pioneering of new technologies, and efforts to reduce or eliminate waste and harmful emissions while increasing the use of renewable materials and sources of energy. The once captain of industry has eschewed a luxury car for a Prius and built an off-the-grid home, authored a book chronicling his journey, Mid-Course Correction, and become an unlikely screen hero in the 2004 Canadian documentary, “The Corporation” and Leonardo DiCaprio’s “The 11th Hour.” He is a master commentator on the Sundance Channel’s series, “Big Ideas for a Small Planet,” and was named one of TIME magazine’s Heroes of the Environment in 2007, with a similar honor from Elle Magazine that year. He’s a sought after speaker and advisor on all issues eco, including a stint as co-chair of the President’s Council on Sustainable Development during President Clinton’s administration. For more information, go to the Interface website.
Devra Lee Davis, Ph.D., M.P.H.:
Author of the widely acclaimed book, When Smoke Ran Like Water: Tales of Environmental Deception and the Battle Against Pollution (Basic Books, 2002), which won a National Book Award (the first book on the environment to win this award since Silent Spring) epidemiologist Devra Davis is one of the world’s most visible and outspoken advocates for improving the environment to protect public health. Dr. Davis is Visiting Professor at Carnegie Mellon University’s Heinz School as well as Honorary Professor, London’s School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and an Expert Advisor to the World Health Organization. President Clinton appointed Dr. Davis to the Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board, (1994-99), an independent executive branch agency that investigates, prevents, and mitigates chemical accidents. As the former Senior Advisor to the Assistant Secretary for Health in the Department of Health and Human Services, she has counseled leading officials in the United States, United Nations, World Health Organization and World Bank. Dr. Davis holds a B.S. in physiological psychology and a M.A. in sociology from the University of Pittsburgh. She completed a Ph.D. in science studies at the University of Chicago, as a Danforth Foundation Graduate Fellow and a M.P.H. in epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins University, as a Senior National Cancer Institute Post-Doctoral Fellow. She has also authored more than 170 publications. Find more information on Dr. Davis’s website.
Wes Jackson, Ph.D., M.A.:
Wes Jackson, President of The Land Institute, earned a BA in biology from Kansas Wesleyan, an MA in botany from University of Kansas, and a PhD in genetics from North Carolina State University. He established and served as chair of one of the country’s first environmental studies programs at California State University-Sacramento and then returned to his native Kansas to found The Land Institute in 1976. He is the author of several books including New Roots for Agriculture and Becoming Native to This Place and is widely recognized as a leader in the international movement for a more sustainable agriculture. He was a 1990 Pew Conservation Scholar, in 1992 became a MacArthur Fellow, and in 2000 received the Right Livelihood Award (called the “alternative Nobel prize”).
Carolyn Raffensperger, J.D., M.A.:
Carolyn is executive director of the Science and Environmental Health Network. As an environmental lawyer she specializes in the fundamental changes in law and policy necessary for the protection and restoration of public health and the environment. Carolyn is co-editor of Precautionary Tools for Reshaping Environmental Policy published by M.I.T. Press (2006) and Protecting Public Health and the Environment: Implementing the Precautionary Principle, published by Island Press (1999). Carolyn coined the term “ecological medicine” to encompass the broad notions that both health and healing are entwined with the natural world. She wrote a bimonthly column for the Environmental Law Institute’s journal Environmental Forum from 1999 until 2008. Carolyn has been featured in Gourmet magazine, the Utne Reader, Yes! Magazine, the Sun, Whole Earth, and Scientific American. Along with leading workshops and giving frequent lectures on the Precautionary Principle, Carolyn is at the forefront of developing new models for government that depend on these larger ideas of precaution and ecological integrity. The new models include guardianship for future generations, a vision for the courts of the 21st century and the public trust doctrine.
2010 Interns
Legal interns: Euree Paik (University of Iowa) and Kinsley Powers (University of South Dakota)
Research intern: Abraham Painter (University of South Dakota)
2009 Interns
Plains Justice had five wonderful interns in summer 2009. We thank them for all their hard work and dedication.
Legal interns: Adam Abelkop (University of Iowa) and Ingrid Anderson (University of Iowa)
Development intern: Nate Merrick (University of Oregon)
Research intern: Samantha Caravello (New York University)
Research and Communications intern: Clare Kernek
A Few of Our Volunteers and Their Contributions:
Stephanie Clohesy (Cedar Falls, IA): Development assistance
Ian Dees (Milwaukee, WI): Web design
Cristina Galan (Areceibo, PR): Spanish translation
Elizabeth Hernandez (West Branch, IA): Spanish translation
Brian Severson (Iowa City, IA): Graphic design services
Andrew Wildenberg, Ph.D. (Billings, MT): Information technology consulting services
Margaret Whiting (Cedar Falls, IA): Art exhibit organizer
