ELAW U.S. Board of Directors

Penelope Pierce
Penelope Pierce is the US Regional Director for the Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative in Bozeman, Montana. She is a 1990 graduate of the University of Oregon School of Law, with certificates in Natural Resources Law and Ocean and Coastal Law. She has experience with a variety of environmental issues, including wetland preservation and spotted owl litigation. She has worked with The Nature Conservancy in Wyoming, the Aquatic Resources Conservation Group in Utah, and was the Major Gifts/Planned Giving Manager at the Seattle Art Museum. Penelope returned to the United States in 2004 after managing a private reforestation project in Costa Rica.

Glenn Miller President & Chair
Glenn Miller, a mining expert, is a professor and the Director of the Graduate Program in Environmental Sciences and Health at the University of Nevada at Reno. His research interests include the effects of mine waste on aquatic systems. He holds a Ph.D. in agricultural chemistry from the University of California at Davis. Glenn has helped ELAW advocates around the world challenge environmental damage caused by mines. Glenn serves as Board Vice Chair.

Mike Axline
Michael Axline is a partner in the Miller, Axline & Sawyer law firm in Sacramento, bringing cutting-edge toxic tort cases involving contamination of public water supply systems. Mike was a law professor at the University of Oregon for more than 15 years before joining Miller, Axline & Sawyer full-time in 2004. Mike founded the Western Environmental Law Center in 1993, a regional public interest environmental law firm with offices in Oregon, New Mexico, and Colorado. Mike filed the first lawsuit on behalf of the endangered spotted owl in the Pacific Northwest and has worked on cases involving endangered species, habitat destruction, water pollution, air pollution, forestry, grazing, toxic substances, pesticides, and other environmental issues. His book, Environmental Citizen Suits, is an invaluable resource for practitioners. Mike is a founder of the ELAW network and consults on ELAW legal projects.

John Bonine
John Bonine has worked to protect the environment through law for 35 years, first at the U.S. Senate, then at the U.S. EPA. Currently, John is a law professor at the University of Oregon and founder of the Environmental Law Clinic at the University. He teaches an LL.M. Seminar at the UO Law School to help create the next generation of environmental lawyers. He has focused on building a support system for grassroots environmental lawyers in the U.S. and around the world. His book, The Law of Environmental Protection, is used in many law schools. John is a founder of ELAW U.S. and maintains regular contact with lawyers in the ELAW network, develops new projects for ELAW and advises on legal projects. He designs and troubleshoots electronic mail connections throughout the network. John travels widely and introduces ELAW to new advocates.

M.L. Church
M.L. Church is Administrator of Lane County Legal Aid and Advocacy Center and has been actively involved in social justice issues locally and state-wide. She is a rafting enthusiast and has enjoyed many of the region's wild rivers. M.L. brings extensive administrative and financial management experience to ELAW U.S.

Cheryl Coon
Cheryl Coon, an environmental attorney, has worked on marine issues for 31 years. She served as Assistant Attorney General to the Department of Conservation for the U.S. Virgin Islands; as legal counsel to the Virgin Islands Coastal Zone Management Commission; as Chief Counsel and Staff Director of the Investigations Subcommittee of the House Committee on Science, Technology and Space; as Legal Counsel to the Ocean Policy Subcommittee of the Senate Commerce Committee; as Senior Assistant Attorney General in the Natural Resources Section of the Oregon Department of Justice; and as Conservation Manager for Portland Audubon. She has taught Ocean and Coastal Law at the Northwestern School of Law in Portland, Oregon. She holds a J.D. from Boston University School of Law and an L.L.M. in marine law from the University of Washington School of Law. She currently collaborates on efforts to establish marine reserves and marine protected areas in Oregon.

Maisie Grace
Maisie Grace is regional counsel for the Federal Transit Administration in New York City. Before beginning a career in law, Maisie Grace was one of a very few women commercial pilots. From 1979 to 1985, she flew for a number of commuter airlines and she continued to fly for Trump Shuttle and Eastern Airlines while attending law school. While working for Eastern Airlines, she served as one of the Airline Pilot Association's public relations spokespersons to the media.

David Hunter
David Hunter is Assistant Professor of Law at American University's Washington College of Law and Director of the Program on International and Comparative Environmental Law. He is President of Peregrine Environmental Consulting. He served as Executive Director of the Center for International Environmental Law and was an environmental consultant to the Czech and Slovak environmental ministries. He was an environmental associate at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom in Washington, D.C. and Executive Director of WaterWatch in Portland. David is a Harvard Law School graduate and has written many articles on international environmental law. He is co-author of International Environmental Law and Policy, 2nd Edition (Foundation Press: 2001). David lives in Washington, D.C. He has served as board Chair and President.

Scott Pope
Scott Pope is the Senior Investment Advisor for Sustainable Wealth Management in Eugene, Oregon. Before founding Sustainable Wealth Management, Scott was a key advisor and helped build the success of Progressive Investment Management of Portland, Oregon. Scott is a Certified Financial Planner and is a member of the Financial Planning Association. In 2005 and 2006, Scott was appointed by Eugene Mayor Kitty Piercy to serve on the Sustainable Business Initiative. Scott is currently on the board of the Institute for Sustainable Economics and Ethics and serves on the advisory board of Pacific Rivers Council.

Amy Solomon
Amy Solomon is a program officer at the Bullitt Foundation in Seattle, where her responsibilities include: Conservation and Stewardship in Agriculture; Energy and Climate Change; Growth Management and Transportation; Public Outreach, Education, and Capacity Building; Toxic and Radioactive Substances; Education and Public Outreach; Training, Organizational Development, and Unique Opportunities. She served as the Executive Director of the Northwest Renewable Resources Center from 1987 to 1995 and is currently on the Executive Board of Energy Northwest. She holds an MBA from Stanford University Graduate School of Business and a BA degree cum laude from Yale University.

Kay Treakle

Kay Treakle is the Executive Director of The Harder Foundation, a private family foundation in Tacoma, Washington, that supports advocacy aimed at conserving and protecting public lands and waters in Alaska, the Pacific Northwest, and the Northern Rockies. Prior to coming to Harder, Kay was a Program Officer in the Environment Program at the C.S. Mott Foundation, in the Reform of International Finance and Trade grantmaking area. Kay has also been the Executive Director of the DC-based watchdog group, the Bank Information Center, where she worked for 10 years advocating for environmental policies and public accountability at the World Bank and other international financial institutions; and worked for Greenpeace for 15 years as a senior manager, campaigner, and board member. She is the recent past President of the Pesticide Action Network North America, and is currently on the Board of the Washington Toxics Coalition.