By Phillip Brown

Hi there!

My name is Phillip Brown and I am Oregon Wild’s legal intern for the summer of 2015. I’m currently a law student at New York University School of Law, and I am originally from the tiny farming town of Emmetsburg, Iowa.

You may be wondering what someone born and raised in corn country and currently living in New York City would be doing all the way out in Portland, Oregon. My home state of Iowa has one of the most altered landscapes on the planet, and my home for the last year has been in the heart of that sea of concrete known as Lower Manhattan – so I know just what is at stake when the wildlands, wildlife, and waters of Oregon are threatened. When I learned about Oregon Wild and their mission, I jumped at the chance to travel across the country and be involved with such a great organization.

I’ve always had a passion for natural landscapes and wildlife, and I was fortunate enough to have had that passion cultivated by some wonderful leaders on my way to becoming an Eagle Scout in the Boy Scouts of America. I continued my love of everything wild as an undergraduate at Iowa State University, studying biology with an emphasis on wildlife and environmental systems.

I also found an affinity for the law and politics at Iowa State, earning a second degree in Political Science.  Along with my commitment to public service, my interests in law and conservation make Oregon Wild and the Pacific Northwest a natural place for me to grow and learn.  

This summer I hope to be involved in as many projects as possible, but I am especially looking forward to helping protect and nurture Oregon’s small but growing wolf population. So far, it looks like the main projects I’ll be working on are the fight to keep wolves listed as an endangered species in Oregon and advocating for wildlife corridors to ensure that the wolves we do have here can take advantage of their full habitat range. I also expect to be spending much of my time working on the legal side of the effort to protect the integrity and health of the Klamath Basin. 

Oregon is a new place to me, and I’m excited about spending as much time as possible out in the forests and wild places that are so unlike anywhere else in the world. I’m sure that spending a summer exploring the state’s landscapes will only nurture my desire to see them protected. I’m equally sure that spending a summer getting to know the wonderful people associated with Oregon Wild will only bolster my dedication to the conservation of some of our nation’s most treasured natural areas.