Cynthia Hirsch has served as an assistant attorney general, litigator, and trainer for 25 years.
Her litigation practice at the Wisconsin Department of Justice focused on enforcing environmental protection laws on behalf of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, coordinating the consumer protection enforcement group, and training assistant attorneys general around the country for the National Association of Attorneys General. Prior to joining the attorney general’s office, she was a criminal prosecutor in Illinois for nine years, where she handled juvenile and felony matters.
Since leaving the Department of Justice in 2016, Cynthia has traveled to Liberia, South Africa, Tanzania, and Kenya with the nonprofit Lawyers Without Borders to work with prosecutors and magistrates enforcing wildlife trafficking, human trafficking, and terrorism laws.
She assisted in litigation regarding indigenous land rights in Papua New Guinea, and worked for three months in southern India for a human rights organization advocating against public corruption and human rights violations.
She has participated as a moot court judge in international criminal law competitions at the International Institute of Higher Studies in Criminal Sciences and the International Criminal Court.
I am a conservation voter because the natural resources of my adopted home state Wisconsin are precious to me. I am happiest when immersed in nature and I want my grandchildren to have the same opportunity. I have spent much of my career fighting for clean water and clean air in Wisconsin. Moreover, I believe that what happens in Wisconsin matters across the globe. We have a moral obligation to take care of our state, as part of a global effort to preserve and conserve our planet.