Since the age of four, Rikki a fifth-generation Montanan, has lived on her family’s ranch, raising cattle and growing crops. Growing up in this remote region full of grasslands, hay meadows, and pine-covered hills, Rikki has spent most of her days caring for the livestock, haying, fencing, camping, hiking, swimming in the river, and riding horses. Rikki first became interested in environmental science while working with a hydrologist on and near her ranch and became concerned about climate change as a high school student. She began to connect the dots between what she was learning about the climate crisis and the Colstrip coal-fired power plant that emits harmful pollutants nearby, as well as fumes from the Cedar Creek oil and gas drilling area. Air quality where she lives has now been ranked some of the worst in the country several times.

When asked why she decided to join the lawsuit, Rikki said, “I knew it was the right thing to do. Learning about environmental science and climate change, I understood this climate crisis to be one of the biggest issues facing us today, and this case demonstrates that our governments need to act to protect us and our future. I want to ensure that basic human rights outlined in the Montana Constitution, such as the right to a clean and healthful environment, are upheld.”