Editorial Board
Sapphire Carter, Editor in Chief
Sapphire grew up in the rolling hills of the Rocky Boy's Reservation in north-central Montana. She is a proud Chippewa-Cree tribal citizen. As a young Indigenous mother, Sapphire understands the importance of preserving our lands for future generations. She wants her son to grow up harvesting traditional medicines, picking juneberries and chokecherries, and hunting and preparing traditional foods like their ancestors. Pursuing a Juris Doctorate concentrating in American Indian Law and Environment ensures she can advocate for tribal sovereignty and protect her culture through the legal realm. In her free time, Sapphire enjoys sewing, beading, and chasing her son.
Will Rose, Editor in Chief
Will grew up in San Diego, California, but has lived and worked in a number of different states since graduating from college. Before coming to law school, Will worked seasonal jobs and converted a van into a camper, traveling around the country for a year and a half. In his free time, Will enjoys hiking, skiing, and poking around abandoned mines. He is passionate about protecting public lands and the wild animals that depend on them.
Brandy Keese, Managing Editor
Brandy is originally from just south of Detroit. When she was younger, she enjoyed ice skating at Campus Martius, exploring the wonders of the Hiedelberg project, and going to Red Wings games at the Joe Louis Arena. What she didn't enjoy so much were the rapidly developing sewage plants, garbage dumps, and other polluting industrial facilities that formed along the barriers of the lower-income areas of Detroit. After attending Central Michigan University to study sociology and criminal justice, Brandy realized the extensive work that needed to be done to defend historically disadvantaged and low-income communities against the deliberate placements of hazardous waste sites. Brandy is excited to take action against deliberate environmental injustice through the practice of law and contribute to the expanding academic field of research surrounding these issues.
Sarah Yarlott, Managing Editor
Sarah Yarlott grew up in Missoula, Montana. Sarah is a tribal member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe and a descendant of the Crow Nation. She received her undergraduate from the University of Montana in English Literature and Creative Writing. Prior to law school Sarah was a professional scratch baker and amateur peak bagger. While on a hike up the Great Northern Mountain, Sarah decided the time had come to pursue a law degree. Sarah spends her free time hiking, backpacking, lifting weights, and hanging out with her dog and husband.
Ayden Auer, Publication Editor
Ayden was born and raised in Salt Lake City, Utah and grew up exploring the Uinta and Wasatch Mountains. While growing up, he spent time camping and fishing in Montana as his grandparents are from Butte, Montana. Ayden attended Cal-State Long Beach and returned to the mountain west to attend law school after somewhat successfully learning how to surf. Mountain biking, fly-fishing, and river rafting are some activities he enjoys outside of school. He is interested in practicing in the environmental field, whether in transactional or regulatory work.
Meridian Wappett, Publication Editor
Meridian grew up in Moscow, Idaho, and graduated from Utah State University with a degree in conservation-restoration ecology and natural resources pre-law. Her background recreating and guiding on western rivers led her to pursue law school to advocate for protecting these important places. Meridian has worked with numerous environmental nonprofits and hopes to have a career working in environmental policy and law for a nonprofit in the Western US. In her free time, you can find Meridian climbing peaks with her dog, rafting rivers with friends and family, finding the best lines to ski, and catching sunrises and sunsets with her camera.
Loui Amos, Business and Technology Editor
While not originally from Montana, Louisa ("Loui") grew up here and has fallen in love with the West. She graduated from Montana State University Bozeman in 2018 and came to the University of Montana School of Law in 2022. While not studying, Loui enjoys spending time with her family, trail running, gardening, and traveling.
Staff Members
Lila Bennett
Lila is originally from northern Maryland, where she grew up on a farm raising all sorts of animals. She found her love for the West while working seasonal jobs managing cattle and horse herds in Wyoming, but always had a passion for conservation. Lila felt that combining her love of the outdoors and her passion for protecting special places could culminate into something productive, so after obtaining a political science degree at the University of Kentucky, she began her pursuit of a JD in the place she loves most. When not buried in her legal studies, Lila can be found on a rascally colt high in the Bitterroot Mountains or on a run deep in the Rattlesnake with her trusty hound, Otter.
Lori Blumenthal
Lori, originally from Connecticut, spent time working and exploring in Massachusetts, Vermont, Maine, and Colorado before settling in Montana in 2016. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Environmental Studies and Political Science from the University of Vermont, and also holds a Master’s Degree in Education from Western Colorado University.
With a background in farming, teaching, and managing school gardens, Lori eventually decided to pursue her passion for environmental advocacy by attending law school. She is enthusiastic about making a difference in the field of environmental law, focusing on critical issues such as water rights, energy sustainability, environmental justice, and wilderness preservation.
When she's not immersed in her studies, you can find Lori outdoors, enjoying hiking, gardening, mountain biking, and snowboarding. She also loves experimenting in the kitchen, often resulting in delicious creations.
Kelly Brady
Kelly was raised on a cattle ranch just outside of Winnett, Montana. Although he lived all over the country for education and work, Montana was the constant return point. Kelly earned a bachelor's degree in political science and international studies from the University of South Carolina. After working up and down the east coast for a number of years, he finally made it back to Montana permanently. Kelly spends his free time fishing and hunting on our state's beautiful public lands. Focused on transactional law around real estate and environmental law, he intends to practice in Central Montana to help communities thrive in Montana's complex regulatory and environmental landscape.
Gillian Ellison
Gillian was born in Shelby, MT. Her family's history includes homesteading near Winnett and Teigen, her grandmother’s two decades of teaching at Shepherd Middle School, and her grandfather moving to Billings in the 1950s to work as an oiler. Both of her parents graduated from Billings High School and the University of Montana, and much of her family still resides in the state. These experiences have instilled in her a strong sense of place and history. After growing up between Montana and Seattle, Gillian earned her undergraduate degree in interdisciplinary studies from UNLV in 2018. She now resides in Missoula, pursuing a JD at the Alexander Blewett III School of Law, with a focus on environmental and energy law.
Sadie Giles
Sadie was born in Maine and spent much of her childhood in the woods and on the lakes of northwestern Maine. She lived in Nebraska and northern and southern Arizona before coming up to Montana to pursue environmental law. She graduated from Barrett, the Honors College at Arizona State with degrees in Business Law and Sustainability and a certificate in Sustainable Energy. Throughout all of this, she fostered a love for green energy and public lands. Sadie also loves rock climbing, hiking, and paddleboarding, and is a newbie skier. She spends much of her spare time nowadays with her 11-year-old boxer mix, Alli.
Hannah Green
Hannah Green grew up in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Dalton, Georgia. Living on a farm gave her an appreciation for agriculture and encouraged her to pursue a law degree and a Master of Public Administration to ensure more sustainable farming practices on a larger scale. She attended the University of Georgia as an undergrad and hopes to use her degrees in Political Science, Philosophy, and International Affairs to balance the policy and ethics behind agriculture. In her free time, you can find her baking, hiking with her dog, or traveling.
Alexis Karbowicz
Alexis (Alex) grew up in Portland, OR, and spent her weekends hiking and skiing on Mt. Hood. She attended Carroll College and studied Anthrozoology, which is the bond between humans and animals. One of Alex's most rewarding experiences in college was fostering a Great Dane from the shelter while in Carroll's small dorm rooms!
Alex spends her time outside of law school hiking, stand-up paddleboarding, and spending time with her sister, who also followed her to Montana for college and decided to stay. When being outside isn't an option, Alex loves to read, play board games, and cuddle with her cat. Alex is still uncertain about what her future in the legal field will hold, but appreciates the opportunity to explore the wide scope of law that impacts our beautiful public land!
Sarah Leopard
Sarah grew up in Clifton, Virginia, where she enjoyed hikes in the lush Virginia woods. After cultivating an interest in the natural world around her, she attended the University of Virginia, where she received her B.A. in Environmental Science. Her love for the gently rolling Blue Ridge mountains transferred to the rocky peaks of Montana when she moved to Helena for AmeriCorps, serving two terms in the Justice for Montanans program. Outside of her law school studies, she enjoys skiing, hiking, and running, especially when followed by a splash in a creek.
Anthony Shirey
I am an Atlanta native and a recent Montana transplant. My passion for the outdoors stems from my background as a competitive rock climber and youth climbing coach, where I helped advocate on behalf of the climbing community for access to public lands for recreation. In my free time, I am an avid skier, film nerd, and occasional Brazilian jiu jitsu practice dummy. If you can solve the New York Times Sunday Crossword faster than me, I’ll buy you a beer!
Faculty Advisors
Professor Michelle Bryan
Professor Michelle Bryan teaches in the Natural Resources & Environmental Law Program and is Co-Director of the Land Use & Natural Resources Clinic, which works on behalf of Montana governments and is among only a few such clinics nationwide. She has been honored to receive the Garlington, Lohn & Robinson Faculty Teaching Award and the Margery Hunter Brown Faculty Merit Award for her professionalism in the classroom, her research, and her public service. Growing up in farming and ranching communities in the West, Professor Bryan was drawn to the fields of natural resources and environmental law. Before joining the law faculty, she worked in private practice representing a variety of clients including local governments, private landowners, non-profits, developers, and affected neighbors and community groups. She brings this diversity of perspective to her scholarship, her teaching, and her work with government clients. Her current research interests include the relationship between land and water use, planning in an age of climate change, the balancing of environmental and land use rights, and the role of public trust in water use. Outside of teaching, Professor Bryan has served as board member and past president of the Montana Justice Foundation. She enjoys hiking, fly fishing, and exploring the vast spaces Montana. Professor Bryan graduated from The University of Montana School of Law with high honors and served as an editor of the Montana Law Review. Prior to law school she was a policy specialist for the Water Resources Center in Bozeman, Montana.
Professor Kekek Stark
Kekek Stark is an Assistant Professor of Law with the Alexander Blewett III School of Law at the University of Montana. In this capacity he is the Co-Director of the following programs: the Indian Law Program; the Margery Hunter Brown Indian Law Clinic; and the American Indian Governance and Policy Institute. He is a Turtle Mountain Ojibwe and member of the Bizhiw (Lynx) Clan. Kekek is a former president of the Minnesota American Indian Bar Association, a forum Bush Foundation Leadership Fellow and alumnus of Hamline University School of Law. Kekek worked as an assistant professor with the American Indian Studies Department at the University of Minnesota – Duluth as well as an adjunct faculty member at several institutions. In addition to his teaching experience, Kekek served as the Attorney General for the Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians, as a policy analyst in the Division of Intergovernmental Affairs for the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission, and as a policy analyst for the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Tribe of Chippewa Indians. As a practitioner of Indigenous law, Kekek has firsthand experience in training students in how to work productively with Indigenous principles and procedures. Along the way, he has helped build institutions grounded in Anishinaabe law and has helped students and communities forge better relations between Indigenous and non-Indigenous institutions and peoples, strengthening tribal sovereignty.