Vermont Law School recently caught up with Amber Widmayer LLM’17 to discuss why she chose VLS in general, and the LLM in Energy Law specifically, and what she is up to now.
Where did you grow up?: Baltimore, Maryland
Why Vermont Law School?: VLS stood out to me as having the only energy law LLM program with a renewable energy focus. Its national reputation for being the top environmental law school, the accessibility and passion of its professors, and its community of students and alumni who are similarly driven to tackle the world’s most pressing problems made VLS the clear choice for me. As an added bonus, it gave me the chance to live in beautiful South Royalton. The White River was in my backyard and hiking trails, school, friends, and the town square were just a short walk away.
Why the LLM in Energy Law: Tying my legal, regulatory, and policy planning background together with expertise in energy law was the best way for me to make the biggest impact on tackling climate change in my lifetime. I entered the energy law LLM program with a goal of eventually working for a utility company to help drive a national transition to renewable energy. At that point, I never imagined I’d have the chance to go one step further by working for an already 100-percent renewable electric utility on achieving Burlington’s Net Zero Energy by 2030 target.
Current position: Regulatory Specialist, Burlington Electric Department
What do you love the most about your current position?: The job feels like a custom-tailored blend of the regulatory, legislative, and legal work I enjoyed most in my previous positions. I love working for a municipal utility providing an essential public service and advancing renewable energy policy with smart, dedicated people solving complex problems every day.