May 2026
Advocacy in Action 2025-2026 Jacobs Public Interest Law Clinic for Democracy and the Environment Volume 1, Issue 1
Defending Democracy, Protecting the Environment, Training the Next Generation of Public Interest Lawyers The 2025-2026 academic year demanded clarity, courage, and persistence from our Clinic, our students, and our clients. In this moment defined by instability, with the erosion of the administrative state, growing public distrust in government institutions, and the outsized influence of corporations and concentrated wealth over our democracy—our students and clients showed extraordinary determination. We experienced painful setbacks, including the devastating legal loss in the Eleventh Circuit on Alligator Alcatraz, but we also secured meaningful victories. We reached a settlement
with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to strengthen protections for eleven imperiled South Florida species. We secured a settlement with the Environmental Protection Agency requiring action on a petition addressing radioactive waste. We pushed the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to confront toxic air pollution threatening a neighboring community. We helped a Tribe obtain critical public records and supported Waterkeepers fighting to defend aquatic ecosystems across the state.
the most powerful tools available to communities demanding accountability, transparency, and environmental justice. Our students leave this year understanding both the scale of the challenge ahead and the responsibility to meet it. Prof. Jaclyn Lopez Director, Jacobs Public Interest Law Clinic for Democracy and the Environment
Inside this issue: Real Responsibility, Real Advocacy...
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Applying Law to Chal- 2 lenges... Beyond the Classroom 3 and Into Federal...
Following the Money: Politics and the...
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Working on Issues Close to Home...
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A Meaningful and Impactful Legal Career
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This work reminds us that democracy is not selfexecuting. Our common belief in the law remains one of
2025-2026 highlights:
The Jacobs Public Interest Law Fellowship: Preparing Attorneys
• Supported litigation in administrative and state court to protect Florida’s springs
As the inaugural Jacobs Public Interest Law Fellow, I support the Clinic in representing clients advancing public interest environmental goals, working most closely with Healthy Gulf, a nonprofit organization dedicated protecting the Gulf and the communities in the Gulf South. I have grown as an attorney and learned about public interest environmental litigation and how to de-
• Filed an amicus brief in the Eleventh Circuit on the 10th Amendment and manatees
velop and manage a nonprofit’s legal program. This position has provided me with mentorship, guidance, and opportunity to engage in meaningful cases that I would not have received elsewhere.
Alyssa Huffman, Esq. Law Fellow, Jacobs Public Interest Law Clinic for Democracy and the Environment
• Settled a lawsuit to compel protections for 11 south Florida species • Submitted public comments on an air permit impacting a St. Pete Community • Sent notice of intent to sue over Endangered Species Act violations • Filed notice of appeal in the D.C. Circuit over a Nuclear Regulatory Commission decision