Thomas Ruppert is a staff attorney at the UF Levin College of Law’s Conservation Clinic where he also works with the extension arm of UF’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences as part of a multidisciplinary approach to issues important to both institutions.  Mr. Ruppert has worked with diverse conservation and environmental issues including the Clean Water Act’s total maximum daily load program, conservation easements, takings law, boating law in Florida, legal strategies to implement low impact development, land use, and growth management. 

Mr. Ruppert has background working with IFAS and IFAS extension agents in the waterfronts context through work with Florida Sea Grant.  Mr. Ruppert has expanded his work with IFAS to include comprehensive planning and research into legal issues surrounding low-impact development strategies.  Mr. Ruppert speaks fluent Spanish and assists with the UF Conservation Clinic's Costa Rica summer program in San José where he has worked on human rights, water, and property issues.