CUB Staff Spotlight: Mike and Ben
Posted on August 7, 2018 by Mike Goetz
Tags, General Interest
Ben Swerdlow joined the CUB staff a little over two months ago as our Summer Contract Attorney, but I first met him several years ago, and I learned quickly that Ben and I have a lot in common. First, with a mountaineering trip on Mt. Saint Helens, and later with the Public Interest Environmental Law Conference (PIELC) in Eugene, where we built on our love of nature with our shared passion for protecting it. Moreover, we realized a passion for energy law and also a want to advocate for the benefit of consumers.
For Ben the culmination of many of these passions came when he joined Portland Mountain Rescue (PMR) in 2016. PMR is a nonprofit all-volunteer mountain rescue organization based in Portland that provides no cost rescue services in and around Oregon. In that capacity he has been able to participate in numerous rescues, including some high profile ones on Mt. Hood.
While these rescues often are what get PMR on the news, it is the training and education that allows them to help. Also, apparently, volunteers sometimes get to play a sled dog to pull a gear cache, which leads to tough but fun experiences, and similarly funny looking photos.
Having known Ben for several years, I knew that he would be a great fit at CUB as a summer contract attorney due to his hardworking nature, passion for public interest advocacy, positive attitude, and solid foundation in energy law. It certainly doesn’t hurt that we share many of the same hobbies, and are able to exchange weekend adventure stories of time spent in the alpine or on trails.
Spending the time that Ben and I do in the mountains also allows us to see the effects of climate change. Glaciers are shrinking, fire seasons are becoming longer and more destructive, and snow levels are becoming more sporadic. This makes travel in the wilderness more dangerous, and spurs the upsetting realization that we are not doing enough to protect the environment. An especially unfortunate realization when so much of what you do is based on these pristine places staying that way. Ultimately that is part of what motivates both Ben and me in our work at CUB.
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08/07/18 | 0 Comments | CUB Staff Spotlight: Mike and Ben