Demonstrating expertise in multiple complex legal areas, including contract, nonprofit, environmental and earth law, Josephine H. Watson, Esq., is a formidable legal consultant at her firm Mycelial Law LLC. Honoring a deeply personal connection to nature, she collects program reform recommendations from farms, soil scientists, and nonprofit groups. Ms. Watson advocates for a more integrated approach to funding sources managed at regional or local watershed levels, while exploring the potential of philanthropy to enhance parallel governance processes.
Prior to founding Mycelial Law LLC in 2024, Ms. Watson had already made impressive strides within her profession while still enrolled in college, during which she worked as a program associate with the Yale Center for Business and the Environment, a legal coordinator with Regen Network Development, head of research for the regeneration fund for Conscious Capital, and a legal extern at the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund. In 2017, she founded the Northeast Healthy Soil Network while serving as a researcher in soil regeneration policy at Tufts University’s Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. At the helm of the Northeast Healthy Soil Network, Ms. Watson helped initiate the passage of two major pieces of soil health legislation, the Acts Concerning Soil Health, in Massachusetts and Connecticut. She considers the significant role her think tank played in the development of the legislation to be her most vital career achievement thus far.
Earlier positions in Ms. Watson’s extensive work history include freelance researcher at The New School, strategy consultant and international policy analyst at Soil4Climate, global soil partnership policy intern at the Food and Agriculture Organization, and student representative for the Tufts University Environmental Studies Executive Committee. She gained foundational experience as a research assistant at the Stockholm Environment Institute, a Tisch summer fellow with Food for Free, an intern for Covalence SA’s EthicalQuote market index, a development intern for the nonprofit group Corporate Accountability, and an intern with The Connecticut Audubon Society’s Osprey Nation project.
Academically, Ms. Watson secured a Bachelor of Arts in environmental studies, sustainability policy, equity and political science and a minor in economics from Tufts University. In 2022, she obtained a Juris Doctor in regional climate change adaptation from the Vermont Law & Graduate School. Subsequently, Ms. Watson earned a master’s degree in environmental management on the people, equity and environment track at Yale University’s School of the Environment in 2024. She was admitted to the bar in Vermont in 2022 and has been certified as a soil advocate and yoga instructor, as well as in basic security through the Food and Agriculture Organization.
Further reflecting her dedication to advancing earth law and regenerative agriculture, Ms. Watson has maintained professional affiliation with relevant groups. She is a member of the Society for Earth Law and was part of the U.S. Farmers & Ranchers for a Green New Deal Speakers Bureau in association with Regeneration International.
Ms. Watson credits her highly engaged parents, Hillary and Joe Watson, for nurturing her curiosity and appreciation for art, history and diverse perspectives. Her worldview was also deeply influenced by growing up amid New England’s changing seasons, vibrant farming communities and beautiful woods. Her approach to practicing law was inspired by the writings of Paul Kahn — especially “Origins of Order: Project and System in the American Legal Imagination” — which encouraged her to recognize the necessity for responsive governance to address contemporary ecological challenges. Ms. Watson’s experience organizing regional agricultural initiatives reinforced her belief that local action can drive meaningful changes beyond traditional legislative cycles.
Devoted to civic advocacy, Ms. Watson has engaged her community above and beyond her primary vocation. She has served on the boards of the Agrarian Land Trust, Stonewall Farms and Kinship Earth. Moreover, Ms. Watson has volunteered at the Rastafari Indigenous Village and The Medicine Wheel Society of First Nations. While attending Tufts University, she co-founded the Bird Collective and Burst into Dames, an all-woman jazz fusion band. Today, outside of her work, Ms. Watson remains passionate about music and sings in a band. She also enjoys developing her skills as an herbalist, including cultivating her own plants and preparing medicines using them.
Although still early in her professional journey, Ms. Watson has made a name for herself as an energetic, engaged legal consultant willing to work hard to advance innovative solutions for sustainable governance and community empowerment. As she continues to grow Mycelial Law LLC, she looks forward to fostering philanthropic networks with others who share an interest in leveraging local funds for community resilience amid climate change and political shifts. Ms. Watson is excited about building better, stronger communities that are equipped to have a positive impact on society and nature.