The Rev. John J. Cavanaugh, C.S.C., Award - 2023: Thomas Jorling ’62

In recognition of his leadership and dedication in pursuit of creating a more environmentally conscious world for all, the Notre Dame Alumni Association honors Thomas Jorling ’62 with this award. 

After graduating from the University of Notre Dame in 1962 with a bachelor’s degree in biology, Jorling went on to earn his masters in forest ecology at Washington State University and a law degree at Boston College. Upon graduating law school, he served as attorney advisor in the solicitor’s office at the United States Department of the Interior, creating policies and working with Congress to protect endangered species and wetlands. He later joined the counsel’s office at the Smithsonian Institution, where he provided legal and policy advice to the Museum of Natural History and its hundreds of researchers and was responsible for securing the land for the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center in Maryland on Chesapeake Bay, now among the premier biological research field stations in the country. 

In 1968, Jorling was tapped by Senator John Sherman Cooper, the ranking member of the U.S. Senate Public Works Committee, to act as the minority counsel for each of its five subcommittees. During a period of upheaval in Washington, Jorling shepherded the committee through hearings, markup, floor action, and a successful override of a presidential veto to pass two foundational environmental laws: the Clean Air Act of 1970 and the Clean Water Act of 1972. 

In 1979, after a stint as associate professor and director of the Center for Environmental Studies at Williams College, Jorling accepted an appointment by President Jimmy Carter to serve as the assistant administrator for Water and Hazardous Substances at the Environmental Protection Agency. In this position, he oversaw the implementation of the Clean Water Act, the Ocean Dumping Act, the Safe Drinking Water Act, and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, and led the effort to persuade Congress to enact the Superfund Act of 1980, which established prohibitions and requirements concerning closed and abandoned hazardous waste sites. 

Jorling returned to Williams College for seven more years before serving as Commissioner of the New York State Department of Environmental Constitution, where he led the effort to protect NYC’s water supply sources and develop recycling programs, remediate hazardous waste sites, and adopt a low emission vehicle program. He went on to serve as vice president of environmental affairs at the International Paper Company, where he encouraged a “beyond compliance” program to ensure manufacturing facilities were exemplary neighbors in all communities. 

In retirement, Jorling has served on multiple nonprofit boards, including the Williamson Land Trust, the Wild Center Natural History Museum, and the Adirondack Explorer, among others. He continues to give lectures all over the country on the history of environmental policies, hoping to inspire the next generation to make the world a more sustainable place to live.