(Washington, DC): The Environmental Law Institute (ELI) is delighted to announce three new members have joined its Leadership Council: Jessica K. Ferrell, Carol Adaire Jones & John Pendergrass, and Kimberly Udovic. “We are so fortunate to have these outstanding environmental professionals join the ranks of our Leadership Council,” said ELI Leadership Council President Kathy Robb. “ELI’s vision is a healthy environment, prosperous economies, and vibrant communities founded on the rule of law. As esteemed thought-leaders in the field of environmental law and policy, the newest members of our Leadership Council will bring valuable guidance and expertise to ELI as they make law work for people, places, and the planet.”
- Jessica K. Ferrell is the litigation chair of Marten Law, working on some of the country’s largest environmental law cases and renewable energy transactions. A litigator for over 16 years, Jessica has successfully argued and tried cases on behalf of public and private clients under hazardous waste, natural resource, environmental review, and renewable energy laws and regulations. Much of her work focuses on ensuring provision of long-term clean drinking water to communities impacted by legacy contamination, through litigation against the Department of Defense and its contractors, chemical manufacturers, and users of known and emerging contaminants. Outside the courtroom, Jessica has ensured regulatory compliance of various developments, water diversion and other natural resource-dependent operations. A regular speaker at national events, Jessica has been recognized as a leader in the fields of natural resources, environmental law and litigation by Best Lawyers in America, Super Lawyers, Lawdragon 500, and other organizations. She also maintains a pro bono practice devoted to protecting immigrant rights and serving communities disproportionately impacted by environmental issues. Jessica received her B.A. from Cornell University and her J.D. with certificate in Environmental and Natural Resources Law from Lewis and Clark Law School.
- John Pendergrass leads the ELI Research and Policy Division, which conducts legal and policy research and analyses of pressing environmental and natural resource issues in the United States and globally. He also leads the Institute's Educational Programs, numbering more than 100 each year, and the Institute's Publications Division, which produces ELR--The Environmental Law Reporter, The Environmental Forum, and books. He manages a staff of 35 lawyers, scientists, and other professionals. Carol Adaire Jones joined ELI as Visiting Scholar in September 2014, following a 30-year career as an environmental economist in both government and academia. She is co-leading ELI’s project on Tropical Environmental Liability and ELI’s Food Waste Initiative. Across her career, two major areas of emphasis have been valuing natural resource damages for federal and state environmental litigation, and conducting research to inform the design of environmental and resource conservation policy.
- Kimberly Udovic is the Assistant General Counsel - Regulatory of Toyota Motor North America. Kim and her team advise on a broad range of environmental, health and safety regulatory matters for vehicles, facilities, and transportation/logistics, as well as matters involving vehicle safety and quality, privacy and cybersecurity, and customs and trade. Kim has over 25 years of auto industry legal experience spanning R&D, manufacturing, sales, marketing, operations, information technology, and intellectual property. Prior to assuming her current position at Toyota, Kim handled complex business litigation, including government investigations, class actions, and patent litigation. She has a passion for vehicles and technology. Kim started her career as a litigator at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, and worked in-house at Honda North America for approximately 10 years prior to joining Toyota. She received her law degree from the University of Chicago Law School and holds two degrees from the University of Pennsylvania, a B.S. from the Wharton School and a B.A.S. from the School of Engineering and Applied Science.
The ELI Leadership Council is the Institute’s group for the most prominent environment, energy, and natural resource leaders in the nation. The Council recognizes leaders for their commitment of resources and time to the Institute’s vision of a healthy environment, prosperous economies, and vibrant communities founded on the rule of law. Members participate in events and have a chance to network and engage other leaders in discussions about key environmental law and policy issues.