MEET OUR STAFF

Patricia Siemen, O.P.

Executive Director, Center for Earth Jurisprudence

B.A., Siena Heights University

M.P.A., University of Texas, Austin

M.A., Holy Names College

J.D., Northeastern University

psiemen@stu.edu 

Patricia Siemen is a Dominican Sister from Adrian, Michigan, and an attorney. She currently serves as the director of the Center for Earth Jurisprudence, a collaborative initiative cosponsored by Barry and St. Thomas universities. Previous positions Sister Pat has held include director of the Earth Ethics Institute at Miami Dade College, engaging students and staff in programs and workshops in Earth Literacy; staff attorney at the United States Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division; and legal services attorney for migrant farm workers in South Florida. Sister Pat has also served in community organizing with the African-American community in rural Tennessee, in the parish ministry with the Latino community and elementary education and in her Dominican Sisters’ Congregational leadership from 1988 - 98. She holds a Juris Doctor from Northeastern University School of Law, Boston; a Master in Public Affairs from the University of Texas at Austin; and a Master in Culture and Spirituality from Holy Names University, Oakland, California. Her B.A. is in History and Political Science from Siena Heights University, Adrian, Michigan.

Mary Munson

Legal Director, Center for Earth Jurisprudence

Project Director, CEJ International Environment and Development Center Project

B.S., Massachusetts Institute of Technology

M.P. (Master of Planning), M.A., University of Virginia

J.D., Marshall-Wythe School of Law, College of William and Mary

LL.M., Queen Mary College, University of London

mamunson@stu.edu 

As legal director, Mary directs the Center’s transition project, teaches environmental law and develops curriculum. Her academic background includes advanced degrees in law, international law, environmental science and natural resource planning. She has 19 years of experience as an environmental lawyer, lobbyist and regional director of various environmental nongovernmental organizations. She has represented organizations before House and Senate committees and worked as a Congressional Fellow for a United States Senator. Internationally she led a legal team to investigate environmental policies in the Czech Republic and successfully achieved a law limiting the use of massive, destructive fishing nets in the European Community. She served three terms as chair of the Everglades Coalition, an umbrella group of more than 50 organizations dedicated to restoring the Florida Everglades. She has served on various boards, including three years on the Florida Water Resources Advisory Board, the U.S. Trade Representatives Industry Sector Advisory Committee on Timber Products, and advisory committees for Biscayne National Park and Miami Dade County’s Crandon Park.

Nicole Gérard
Communication and Research Editor

B.A., University of Miami

Master of International Affairs, Columbia University

Ph.D., Edinburgh University

ngerard@stu.edu

Nicole’s professional experience includes work as a legal consultant for Greenpeace International, European Unit; as a consultant for Fern, a European NGO advocating on forest issues; as an environmental educator for Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden; as editorial director of Miami Dade College; and as an editor for New Times newspaper. She holds a Ph.D. in European environmental law from the University of Edinburgh and a Master in International Affairs from Columbia University. She lives with her son, Rémy.

Jane M. Goddard

Program Coordinator for Central Florida

J.D., Barry University

JGoddard@mail.barry.edu

After 20 years as a civil litigation paralegal, Jane returned to the academic world to earn her Master of Liberal Studies degree at Rollins College, Winter Park, Florida, and her law degree at Barry University School of Law, Orlando, Florida. While at Barry, she received the highest grade in seven classes and graduated as the valedictorian in May, 2008. Jane also served as the lead articles editor of the Barry Law Review, and her article, “Building the Cathedral: Sculpting a Part-Time Legal Education in a Double-Time World,” was published by the Barry Law Review in 2007. She was appointed as the co-chair of the Service Committee for the Women Lawyers Association and was named WLA’s Graduate of the Year for 2007 - 08. Jane is particularly interested in the archetypal relationships between human society and the natural world; her article, “The Persistent Pagan: The Green Man and the Green Knight,” was published in the Journal of Graduate Liberal Studies in 2001. With CEJ, Jane concentrates on education and outreach to lawyers and policymakers in the Central Florida community. Jane is a member of the Florida Bar.

Carol Rauseo-Danclair

Executive Assistant


Originally from Trinidad, West Indies, Carol Rauseo-Danclair has resided and worked in the United States for 20 years. She joined CEJ in January 2008, and brings to her role as executive assistant the accounting and office management expertise gained during two decades of experience in the pharmaceutical industry and nonprofit sector. Carol lives in South Florida with her husband and two adult sons. 

 

Center for Earth Jurisprudence Governing Committee Members

July 2008 - June 2009

Barry University Representatives

St. Thomas University Representatives

Community Representatives

 Leticia Diaz, J.D., Ph.D

Dean
Barry University School of Law
6441 E. Colonial Dr.
Orlando, FL 32807
321-206-5601
ldiaz@mail.barry.edu

Cecile (Cece) Dykas, J.D.

Academic Dean
St. Thomas University
School of Law
16401 N.W. 37 Ave.
Miami Gardens, FL 33054
305-623-2381
cdykas@stu.edu

 Audrey Ordenes, M.A.

Organizational and Environmental Consultant
True North
1740 S.W. 31 Ave.
Miami, FL 33145
305-567-2030
audreyordenes@earthlink.net

Judith E. Koons, J.D., D.D.

Associate Professor of Law
Barry University School of Law
6441 E. Colonial Dr.
Orlando, FL 32807
321-206-5650
jkoons@mail.barry.edu

Alfred Light, J.D., Ph.D.

Professor of Law
St. Thomas University
School of Law
16401 N.W. 37 Ave.
Miami Gardens, FL 33054
305-623-2315
alight@stu.edu

Mahadev Bhat, Ph.D.

Associate Professor
Graduate Program Director
Environmental Studies and Economics Department
Florida International University
ECS 33 University Park
Miami, FL 33199
305-348-1210
bhatm@fiu.edu

Sandra Fairbanks, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Philosophy
Barry University
13000 N.E. Second Ave.
Miami Shores, FL 33161
305-899-4806
sjfairbanks@mail.barry.edu


 Roza Pati, J.D., Dr. iur.
Assistant Professor of Law
Executive Director
Graduate Program in Intercultural
Human Rights
St. Thomas University
School of Law
16401 N.W. 37 Ave.
Miami Gardens, FL 33054
305-474-2447
rpati@stu.edu 

 Patricia Siemen, O.P., J.D.
Director, Center for Earth Jurisprudence
St. Thomas University
School of Law
16401 N.W. 37 Ave.
Miami Gardens, FL 33054
305-623-2389
psiemen@stu.edu