Professor of Law, University of New Mexico
Professor Cliff Villa teaches, writes, and practices in the areas of constitutional rights and environmental law, with particular expertise in environmental justice and disaster response. On leave from academia, Prof. Villa served in the Biden administration as political leadership for the U.S. EPA Office of Land and Emergency Management. In that role, based in Washington, D.C., he provided policy direction for national programs including Superfund cleanup, Brownfields revitalization, and emergency response. Previously, Villa served more than 20 years as an EPA attorney in Washington, D.C.; Denver, Colorado; and Seattle, Washington. Within academia, in addition to UNM, Villa has taught at Columbia Law School and Seattle University. Among other publications, Villa is the lead author of ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE: LAW, POLICY & REGULATION (4th ed. 2026), and author of legal scholarship including Law and Lawyers in the Incident Command System (2013), Remaking Environmental Justice (2020); Don’t Blame the Flint River (2022), and Environmental Justice Beyond 2 ̊ (2024). Villa was born and raised in Albuquerque, New Mexico, with local roots tracing back to the Atrisco Land Grant of 1692.
Environmental Justice: Law, Policy & Regulation 