91视频

Michael Gelardi鈥檚 boyhood stomping grounds were in Oregon鈥檚 Willamette Valley, an area of the state known for lush forest and fertile farmland.

鈥淚 grew up around a lot of farmers and loggers,鈥� Gelardi said.

The surroundings helped him develop a keen interest in environmental issues. He studied political science and environmental policy in college, and then went on to work for a nonprofit land conservation group in California.

While attending University of Washington School of Law, he spent a summer working for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. A summer internship with Davis Wright Tremaine during his second year in law school eventually turned into a full-time job with the law firm. His practice expanded to include land use issues.

鈥淢y chief interest was in environmental law, but I started to cobble together related areas of law,鈥� Gelardi said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 helped me keep myself busy.鈥�

He鈥檚 earned a solid reputation in Oregon as one of the leading legal experts on land use laws as they affect the state鈥檚 wine industry. But it was another environmentally related topic that set him in the spotlight on a national platform.

In 2007, he wrote a law review article on the Kennedy New Frontier program, created to encourage physical fitness by creating opportunities for outdoor recreation while also protecting what Gelardi calls 鈥渟pecial places around the country.鈥� The program, in part, provided grants so that cities and states can buy land to turn into parks.

Gelardi had heard talk that some grant recipients were using the land for other purposes, however. He began to research the issue. The end result was his article.

That article resurfaced within the past year when journalists around the country began digging into the topic of the piece. Gelardi soon found himself in demand as a source of background information on the program and what his research had uncovered.

Closer to home, part of Gelardi鈥檚 time is spent as a board member for Portland Fruit Tree Project, which helps local residents care for privately owned fruit and nut trees. The group also helps harvest the produce, which is then donated to people who wouldn鈥檛 be able to otherwise afford it.

鈥淟andowners offer to register their trees. We help care for them,鈥� Gelardi said. We have a team of tree care volunteers that help the owners prune the trees and make them more productive.鈥�

Tell us something about yourself that might surprise most people 鈥�

I once had a commercial truck driver鈥檚 license.

How does the reality of being a lawyer differ from what you anticipated when you started law school?

I don鈥檛 wear as many suits as I thought I would.

If you hadn鈥檛 become an attorney, what career would you have pursued?

I would have been a geology professor. They take great field trips.

What was your first car (year, make, model, 鈥渘ickname鈥�)?

A 1984 stick shift Nissan Sentra. It was primary red with one slightly off-color door as a result of a bad paint job following an unfortunate incident involving a deer and my dad. It didn鈥檛 need a nickname.

Oregon Coast or Mount Hood?

The coast because my home fishing waters are in the Coast Range.