Lisa Mitchell, MES, LL.B has been part of East Coast Environmental Law since its inception.

Lisa served on ECELAW's originating Board from 2007 to 2009, and she has been providing legal support to the organization since 2011. Lisa obtained her law degree from Dalhousie and followed that with a graduate degree in Environmental Studies. Her early law career was with the federal government, where she contributed to the drafting of pesticide legislation. After a brief period in Ottawa, Lisa returned to Atlantic Canada to begin an environmental law practice focused on legislative drafting and interpretation, and agricultural law. Over the years, that practice grew to include a broad range of environmental law practice areas and clients. Lisa has provided advice and training on environmental legislation and policy in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island, and Ontario. Her recent work with ECELAW has included valuable collaborations with national, regional and local groups on the creation of legally-based environmental rights.

Mike Kofahl is a life-long student, traveler, cook, amateur historian, storyteller, tree-planter, and dog-lover. He enjoys being outdoors, playing soccer, hiking and biking, cooking and BBQing for friends and family, and just relaxing by the water.

He lives in beautiful Margaree in Cape Breton, NS. Mike enjoys everything about Nova Scotia: the people, the history, the food, the forests, and the salty smell of the water along the coast.

Mike has always been connected to the environment. He grew up on a horse farm and has worked plenty of outdoor summer jobs, including picking blueberries, unloading crab, and planting more than 1.5 million trees over 10 years as a tree-planter.

Mike graduated from Dalhousie three times. He received both a Bachelor of Arts (with honours) and a Master of Arts from the History Department. He then graduated with a Juris Doctor from the Schulich School of Law, where he also completed two certificates of specialization in marine law and environmental law at the school's Marine and Environmental Law Institute.

Mike worked as a Pro Bono student at East Coast Environmental Law for several years during law school. Mike's experience with East Coast Environmental Law included helping to draft the Nova Scotia Environmental Rights Working Group's Environmental Bill of Rights, researching legal topics ranging from pesticides to asbestos use in schools, and helping grow the organization’s online Information Library.

Mike articled jointly with East Coast Environmental Law and McKiggan Hebert. Mike then worked as ECELAW's Coastal Research Coordinator before being called to the Bar in Nova Scotia in October 2019 and moving into a new position as ECELAW's Staff Lawyer.

Mike continues to pursue pro bono opportunities. He has been volunteering with the Community Justice Society in Halifax for several years, facilitating restorative justice conferences for young and adult offenders, and serving on its board of directors.

Kostantina (Tina) Northrup is a settler Nova Scotian who was born in Toronto and raised in New Brunswick from a young age.

Before pursuing a career in law, Tina earned an MA and PhD in English literature through research on environmental writing by Canadian poets and novelists. Ultimately, her interests in environmental and climate justice inspired her to enter the Schulich School of Law at Dalhousie University with the goal of becoming a public-interest environmental lawyer.

Tina volunteered with East Coast Environmental Law through the Pro Bono Dalhousie program through all three years of her legal studies. After her first year of law school, she became East Coast Environmental Law’s part-time office manager, and she interned with the organization for the summer. In the years that followed, her commitment to public legal education and community collaboration led her to take on a variety of roles with the organization, contributing legal research and supporting project development, communications, and fundraising.

After finishing law school, Tina stepped into a shared articling position with East Coast Environmental Law and McKiggan Hebert. In the spring of 2020, she was called to the Nova Scotia Bar and assumed a full-time role as staff lawyer. Her areas of special interest include Aboriginal and Indigenous law in environmental contexts, laws related to climate change mitigation and adaptation (including energy law focused on the renewable energy transition), environmental assessment and decision-making, human rights in environmental contexts, and rights of nature.

Tina has provided public legal education and training in New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. She teaches part-time at the Schulich School of Law, and she has supervised Schulich students undertaking Directed Research Projects and the Environmental Law Placement course.

When Tina completed her law degree at the Schulich School of Law, she received the Elizabeth May Award for Environmental Service. In addition to volunteering with East Coast Environmental Law, she has served as a Co-Chair of the Environmental Law Students’ Society at the Schulich School of Law and a Co-Chair of the Energy Action Team at the Ecology Action Centre. She has also volunteered with the Environmental Noxiousness, Racial Inequities and Community Health (“ENRICH”) Project, the Adult Literacy Program at Halifax Public Libraries, and the Out of the Cold shelter. She is currently a member of the Truth and Reconciliation Working Group of the Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society.

Richelle received her law degree from the University of Ottawa in May 2021. She returned home to Fredericton, in the Wolastoqey territory, to begin her legal career as an articling clerk at the Court of Appeal of New Brunswick. Richelle also has an undergraduate degree in Philosophy and Interdisciplinary Leadership Studies from the University of New Brunswick’s Renaissance College with a major in environmental studies.

While pursuing her law degree, Richelle participated in the EcoJustice Environmental Law Clinic, completed a Pro Bono Students Canada placement with the Native Women’s Association of Canada, and completed an internship with the Peskotomuhkati Nation at Skutik. These experiences shaped her commitment to environmental issues and Indigenous rights. 

Before law school, Richelle worked with the Nature Trust of New Brunswick, and she is excited to return to the non-profit sector with ECEL. Her involvement with ECEL goes back to her time as a volunteer when she helped draft ECEL’s first report on the Government of New Brunswick’s performance under its Species at Risk Act. Having recently completed the updated report, Protected on Paper Only: An Evaluation of New Brunswick’s Legal Obligations under the Species at Risk Act, and joining ECEL as a staff lawyer in January 2025 feels like a full-circle moment for Richelle. Drawing on her experience and passions, Richelle leads ECEL’s nature and biodiversity initiatives.

Richelle volunteers on the Board of Directors for Lawyers for Climate Justice and is a member of the Law Society of New Brunswick’s Climate Change Task Force. She is also a proud Mom to an energetic toddler and enjoys spending time outdoors with her family and friends. 

Sarah discovered her love for the natural world through a camera lens while studying photography and painting at Mount Allison University. Her work with non-profit organizations began in Red Deer, Alberta where from 2018-2021 she coordinated projects of the Sustainable Red Deer Society—“ReThink Red Deer”—including the Eco-Living Fair, the Piper Creek Restoration Agriculture Project, and the Common Ground Garden Project. Through these and many other grassroots collaborations, Sarah’s passion for nature grew to encompass an appreciation of the intersection of the environment and social justice.

Following the COVID-19 pandemic, Sarah sought to gain more experience in the social non-profit landscape. She joined the Bredin Centre for Career Advancement as Program Assistant and then as Career and Employment Coach, where she worked for 2 years supporting youth and newcomers in their job search.

A return to her hometown of Fredericton in 2024 has reunited Sarah with the landscapes of her youth. With a passion for protecting and restoring ecosystems, Sarah is thrilled to be a part of the East Coast Environmental Law team, to support the work of passionate and dedicated law professionals in working toward the vision of laws and legal systems that protect ecological health and promote environmental and climate justice in Atlantic Canada.